Thank you for the memories
by michaela321
Summary: Post 2x18 Last Dance. Bonnie casts a spell to fake her own death, but something goes wrong. Will they defeat Klaus and their other enemies while struggling confusing reality and growing feelings for each other? Bamon! ON HIATUS!
1. Chapter 1 - Lost

„ _ **Hello to you all!**_

 _ **I would like to present you my story. As it is written in the summary it's post 2x18, actually, right to the scene where 'Damon choses Elena'. Everything prior that on the show happened, with an exception of one scene, where Bonnie wakes up and videochats with Elena. It's a Bamon story, but it will be very slow burn, and it will also follow a little bit Stelena, Delena and Beremy, along with the exploration of frendships.**_

 _ **I hope you'll give it a chance and read it! Reviews are welcomed!**_

 _ **Enjoy!**_

* * *

Chapter 1 - Lost

„I will always choose you."

The intense stare he gave her told her he meant those words. But, it also said something more. Something she wanted to deny for a long time now. He cared about her. He loved her. And he was her boyfriend's brother.

So, the definition of the situation was complicated. Why? Because, as much as she wanted to deny it, she felt a pull towards him. She loved Stefan, she would never hurt him like that, but how do you ignore such devotion that Damon was giving her?

He gave her that look, the look that said he would give her the world, he would show her how to live, how to have fun, how to love with no limits. And he would die for her, too. There's no doubt about that. He would give her a life to live, if it meant he would have to die.

Buzzing of his phone stopped all her thoughts, as she diverted her eyes to the floor and her hand shyly swept her hair behind her ear.

He looked annoyed, and when he pulled his phone out of his pocket and saw the caller ID, he looked even more annoyed and rolled his eyes. He swiped the screen to answer the call and put the device to his face. Before the person on the other side of the line had a chance to say anything, he said through his teeth:

„This better be good, Little Gilbert."

Elena looked at him again with her eyes widening a little, showing an interest for the phone call that was playing in front of her.

„Damon?" he heard Jeremy talk on the other side. The boy seemed a little panicked, so he knew something must have gone wrong. „You need to come here now!"

„What did you do?" Damon asked him lowly assuming Elena's little brother screwed something up.

„I didn't do anything!" Jeremy yelled. „It's Bonnie! She's...!" he stuttered and took a deep breath „You have to come now! I don't know what to do, Damon." Pause „Just come at the witch's house right now!"

Damon heard the panic in the boy's voice and as he looked at confused Elena he said:

„I'll be right there." with that he ended the call.

„What happeened?" Elena urgently asked.

„That was Jeremy, your brother." Damon told her as he put his phone back at his pocket and turned around to find his jacket that was sitting on the chair near the window.

„What happend, Damon?" she asked slowly and angrily as she saw he was somehow trying to avoid the question.

Damon didn't speak. He was putting on his jacket and turned around to Elena, just looking at her a little confused, worried, lost. She didn't know how to describe his look. She just knew something must have gone very wrong.

He tried to get away from the room not answering her anything, but she stopped him middle way and stood in front of him.

„Tell me what is going on? What did Jeremy said to you?" she asked him angrily.

„I have to go. Take care of something. We'll talk when I get back." Damon said to her calmly.

„No, you're not going anywhere!" She pulled him by his jacket as he tried to walk forward. „You're not going anywhere until you don't answer me!" she was yelling now and he was too calm that she couldn't read his look.

She started punching his chest, but he took her wrists in his hands as she tried to struggle and yell at him. He told her to calm down but she didn't listen.

All her yelling got Stefan to enter the room asking what was going on, as he grabbed Elena by the waist to pull her away from his brother.

„Tell me what happened! If something's wrong with Bonnie I have a right to know!" she was yelling in tears at Damon.

Stefan soothed her so she would calm down.

„Elena, calm down, please and tell me what happened." he took her face in his palms and made her look at him so she would get some restraint.

„I don't know what happened. He won't tell me!" she cried „Jeremy called him and he was just about to leave...Something's wrong! He won't say it, but I know something's wrong!"

Stefan turned around and looked at Damon seriously.

„What happened?"

Damon rolled his eyes and hold his mouth shout. He looked at Stefan but refused to speak.

„Damon, answer the god damn question!" Stefan was losing his patience with his brother.

„I don't know."

„Stop lying!" Elena yelled from behind Stefan „You know! You talked to Jeremy and he said something to you."

„What did he say,Damon?" Stefan asked.

„I don't know." Damon slowly pronounced his words.

Elena huffed in annoyance.

„He didn't tell me." He said calmly.

„Don't you think that it's enough with the secrets and going behind our backs?" Stefan pressed.

„I am telling you the truth." Damon said. „He just called and said to come to the witches house. He didn't say why."

„It has to do with Bonnie." Elena said shaking her head and grabbing it with her hands „Something's wrong."

She looked at Damon who had his silent face on and it told her she was right.

„We have to go. We have to the witches house." She says.

„Wow, wow, wow!" Damon said annoyed. „Little Gilbert called me. He said I should come to the house. He didn't say anything about you two."

„You don't really think I'm gonna sit here and wait to find out if my best friend is ok?"

„We're coming with you. „ Stefan nodded to Damon.

„I don't think that's smart. Klaus still thinks that Bonnie's dead. It needs to stay that way. If we all go running to the witches house, he's gonna suspect something."

„I highly doubt that Klaus has eyes on us all the time." Elena said annoyed.

„Well, I don't think we should risk it. This is a safe house for you and you're not going anywhere!" he yelled.

„This is about my best friend! The best friend that almost died tonight trying to save my life, stupidly got in some sort of partnership with you, and now is in trouble because of you! You want me to sit around in a safe house, when you can't even tell if she is alive at all?!"

* * *

It didn't take long for Damon to crumble. Soon, after the discussion he, Stefan and Elena had in his room, the trio was on their way to the witches house. The ride was quiet, because they didn't really know what to expect when they come to the finish line. Elena tried calling Jeremy, but he didn't answer, which only rose their worry more. Parking his car at the woods, Damon stepped out of the car, with Stefan and Elena following him.

As they got near to the house, they saw Jeremy running out of the it. He looked panicked and his clothes were filthy and wrinkled. Elena started running towards her brother and Stefan and Damon quicken their step not to fall too behind her. She run straight to her brothers arms.

„Jeremy, thank God!" she exclaimed. She pulled away from his embrace just when Stefan and Damon came near them.

„What is going on? Where's Bonnie?" Elena asked.

„It's bad." The boy said. He looked at Damon. „I don't know what's wrong with her. I brought her here like you said, and waited her to wake up."

„Oh, God." Elena cut him of. Tears were forming in her eyes as she thought the worst. „Did she woke up? Please, tell me that she woke up?"

„She did." Jeremy answered quickly. Somehow, they all released a breath they were holding.

„Then why did you called me?" Damon asked.

„Is she all right?" Stefan asked.

„I don't know." The younger Gilbert said. „She woke up and I tried to hug her, make sure she's ok...but she pushed me. She pushed me of of herself and yelled at me. And she looked at me... she never looked at me like that. Like I was a strainer. Like she didn't know who I am."

Elena's eyes widened and her mouth slowly dropped.

„And then she started to ask where is she, and who am I, and what did I do to her." He continued. „She had no idea who I was, and no memory how she got here."

„Oh, my God!" Elena sighed.

„How the hell did that happened?" Damon said quietly. Stefan looked at him and decided not to say anything.

„What happened then?" he asked Jeremy to continue.

„I tried to calm her down, but she wouldn't listen. She, somehow pushed me away and run away from me."

„Damn' it!" Damon yelled. „Did she get away?!"

„She tried. She didn't know where she was going, she was disoriented, and she found the door to get out of the house, but they didn't open. They were locked."

Elena and Stefan looked at each other, but Damon smirked.

„How were the door locked? Did you locked them?" Elena asked her brother.

„No. You can't lock the door." He answered.

„Then how-?"

„The withes." Damon cut Elena's question. „The witches sealed the door, so that she can't get out."

Elena looked at him with her eyebrows cringed.

„Yeah, probably." Jeremy said.

„Where is she now?" Stefan asked.

„Well, she couldn't get out of the house, so she went upstairs when she saw I was coming after her. She run upstairs and she got in one of the rooms. She closed herself there and I guess she barked the door somehow, cause I couldn't get in. She is still inside, I tried to talk to her, but she won't listen to me. I don't know what else to do."

„You did a good thing calling us." Stefan assured him.

„She's completly lost it." Jeremy said. „She doesn't know who I am." He looked at his sister.

„We'll talk to her, and we'll help her. She's gonna remember, Jer." Elena said to him.

„I don't think it's gonna be that easy. It's not just that she didn't know who I am. I think she didn't know who she is either."

Elena took one quick glance at Stefan and without another tought run inside the house. The rest of them followed her. With Jeremy's guidance they got on the upstairs floor, to the door behind which Bonnie was hiding. They were all quiet, and Stefan listen if he could hear her inside.

„I can hear her breathing." He whispered slowly.

Elena knocked on the door.

„Bonnie." She called for her friend. „Bonnie."

No sound at all left the room.

She tried twisting the door knob to opened the door but she couldn't push them further.

„Bonnie. Can you open the door, please?" She begged her. „We just want to make sure you're ok."

They waited for a few more moments, but nothing happened. Stefan tried to open the door and as they bunched a little sobs came out of the room.

„No!" Bonnie yelled from inside. „Stay away from here! Leave me alone!"

Elena flinched on the words her best friend was saying. Stefan looked at her, and she nodded giving him a sign to keep trying to get in the room. He managed to open the door a little further, and saw that Bonnie used a commode to barricade the door. He looked around the room, with Elena looking over his shoulder.

„Bonnie?" he called for her calmly.

They entered the room, while Jeremy and Damon stood on the door watching closely not making a sound.

They couldn't see anything inside, so Damon asked Jeremy: „Can you get us some light in here?"

The boy looked at him and said: „There's an electrical fuse downstairs. If we just switch it on, we could get the light in the whole house." He said and turned his head back to the room with no word anymore.

Damon was growing inpatient. „Well, are you gonna go and do that or do I have to find a switch on your ass so you would do it?"

Jeremy gave him a nasty look, and hesitantly obliged.

Stefan made his way deeper in the room with Elena glued to his arm, trying to make something in the room, as it was night and very dark inside. Stefan heard Bonnie's sobs inside an let them leed them to her. He looked over a bed that was on the wall from his opposite and saw Bonnie crumbled like a little scared girl on the floor.

By now, Jeremy made it to the fuse, and in that moment the house lighted up. They could see clearly now, and they could see Bonnie too. And she was... a mess. Stefan and Elena stopped in their tracks and didn't move a limb.

Curious, Damon made his way over to them and followed their gaze. He saw her. She was still the same Bonnie by her looks, but something about her was so disturbing that it made him froze in his tracks.

She was crouched down on the floor hugging her knees close to her chest. She looked like a scared little girl.

She lifted her look to them and her eyes were lost and terrified. „Please." She begged „Don't hurt me. Please... Let me go. I won't tell anyone. Just, let me go."

Elena took a step forward and said:

„Bonnie, calm down. You don't have to be afraid. Nobody wants to hurt you. We want to help you. OK?" she took a few more steps forward and Bonnie jumped as she saw this girl was going straight to her.

„No! Don't come near me! Let me go!" she yelled and started to cry harder.

Damon watched and couldn't belive his eyes. _Who was this girl?_ The scared crying girl in front of him could not be Bonnie Bennett. The great, judging, self-righteous witch that he met a few months ago. She was not the same girl when he first met her, because even her had more bravado than this one. She was not the girl who just a couple of hours ago was ready to take down Klaus even if it was the last thing she would do. This girl was something else. She was scared and lost.

Stefan took Elena by the hand to put some space between the two girls. He then approached Bonnie slowly as the girl in the question shivered with fear.

„Do you know who we are?" he asked her quietly and softly.

For a long time she didn't answer and just watched him closely. He wasn't pushing her to say anything and patiently waited for her answer. She finally shook her head for no. He kneeled so that he would be in her face level.

„Do you know where are you?" he asked her again. This time she shook no a little quicker.

„Do you know who you are?"

She frowned and bit her lip on his question and started sobbing again.

„It's okay. We can help you. You just have to trust us." He tried to assure her.

She didn't say anything more, but it seemed to calm her down a bit.

„Do you think you can do that?" he asked her sincerely.

She took a moment to think about it, and then finally nodded. Stefan extended his hand to her, and after a few moments of hesitation she accepted it. But, touching Stefan's arm made her froze in her intention to get up. A very weird feeling run through her body, and she saw all kinds of flashes in her head. She felt them too, fear, pain, blood and death.

„No!" she screamed as she let go of Stefan's hand and took a step back from him. Panic arose again in her and she started screaming. „What was that? Who are you?!" he tried to get to her again, but she refused to listen to him. „Get away from me!"

And then, Stefan fell to his knees, grabbing his head in pain and growling at her, Elena rushed to his side, and was yelling at her friend to stop hurting him. Bonnie confused by the scene in front of her, somehow managed to bypass the couple, and as she tried to get out, Damon appeared in front of her in flash and grabbed her by the wrists, as she tried to struggle from his grasp.

„You're not going anywhere, Witchy!"

As her emotions were flying over the room, the window glass broke down in that moment and had her more scared than ever. She trembled in Damon's strong grip, and tried to get away from him. He noticed that she was scared and that he was about to receive his punishment just like his brother. In defense his face vamp out and he appeared to take more pressure on Bonnie grabbing her by the shoulders and trying to keep her steady in place.

Seeing his face all monster like, Bonnie froze for a moment and then started screaming in fear from the top of her lungs. The good thing was that it messed up her concentration and Stefan was released from the excruciating pain in his head.

The three of them yelled for Bonnie to calm down, but, she didn't listen. She just kept screaming, and the moment she stopped her eyes rolled in her head and she lost consciousness, having her body go limb and aimed to hit the floor. Damon saw this and grabbed her before she could fall down, holding the young unconscious witch in his arms.

* * *

 _'They were in a fine mess. How were they supposed to get out of this?_ ' Damon thought while he was in his living room pouring himself a glass of bourbon.

After the mess at the witch's house, they had to take care of Bonnie, and they all agreed that it was the safest to get her out of the house and bring her somewhere else. The last place they could take her was her own house, because they didn't wanted to pick Klaus's interest. The Gilbert house was out of the question because of John, and they couldn't be banging on Caroline's house in the middle of the night and throw the amnesic witch straight to the Sheriff's arms. So, the boarding house was the most logic choice, and after all, Elena was the owner, and she was staying there, too.

Elena was on the other side of the room, nervously doing circles and rubbing her neck, while letting out frustrated breaths. In that moment Stefan entered the room.

„I put her up in my room. She should be awake any moment now."

„Then, I should go upstairs and wait for her to wake up." Elena announced and already started to make her way out of the room.

Stefan took her by the hand and stopped her.

„I don't think that's smart." Stefan said, and Elena send him a confused and a little offensive look.

„I just don't think that's what she needs right now." He tells her.

„She's gonna wake up in an unknown place, all confused and scared. She needs a familiar face with her, at least."

„And, we already established you are not her familiar face." Stefan pointed out. Elena let out another frustrated breath and made her way to sit on the sofa.

„I'm sorry, Elena." Stefan told her and put his hands in his pockets. „But, it's the true. I think we should leave her alone and let her get comfortable with herself and her surroundings."

„So, what are we gonna do with her?" Damon finally asked.

Stefan let a frustrated breath out too, and looked at his brother.

„I don't know. We'll have to look at the spell she cast and find out what went wrong. But, first, we need to take care of her, and convince her we are her friends." Stefan said. „It's gonna take a lot of time, but we can't pressure her."

„Hate to break to you, brother, but time is something we don't have." Damon spat out. „Klaus is out there, waiting to make his next move, we don't have the time to babysit the amnesic witch."

„Well, I don't know what else to tell you." Stefan bit out.

„We need to find a way to get that little witch on her feet again, so that she can kill Klaus!"

„We already agreed that she is not doing that, Damon." Elena said.

„No, you agreed. But, what you don't want to understand is that Bonnie is our weapon against Klaus and the only way for you to be safe."

„I told you we will find another way!" Elena stood up from the sofa, and glared angrily at Damon.

„There is no other way! She was the only one who can do it!"

„Then, maybe, you should have thought better, then letting her cast a dangerous spell on herself in order to full Klaus." Stefan yelled.

The two brothers glared at each other, and Damon frowned.

„So, now it's my fault that the witch lost her memory's?"

„Well, hate to break it to you brother, but yeah, it's your fault." Stefan answered sarcastically.

„Ouuu! This is rich!" Damon spat out. „Of course, you would think that! Whenever there's a problem, it's my fault! Bonnie knew what she was doing, and I didn't do anything! She done it all by herself! You just waited for me to screw something up, so that you can gloat on me being the bad brother!"

„This isn't about you or me, Damon!" Stefan told him."It's about Bonnie. And, you were the only one who knew about what she was planing on doing tonight, so that puts you straight to the suspects list."

* * *

 _Heavy steps were following her. She felt it. It was dark around her, and she couldn't see anything familiar. The air was stifling, and her breathing was heavy. She tried to catch her breath, but ineffective, her lungs couldn't get any fresh air that would help her. Her steps were quick in running and numerous higher than her persecutor. He walked in hurried and bigger steps, as she tried to outrun him. Nothing seemed affective. He wouldn't give up._

 _Her hair was falling in her face as she kept turning to set her eyes of how far away she was from him. Everything was dark around her, but it seemed as if she was in a very long hallway, with stone walls and floors, cold surface all around her. It seemed so far away from her home. With each faster step, the chaser became more closer to her, and she knew she couldn't outsmart him, he would catch her, no mater what , it was only postponing the inevitable. He was going to get her._

In a breath she woke up. Her eyes shot open and in a second she was in a sitting position. As her breathing decreased, she took her surroundings. It wasn't the stone hallway, but a warm nice bedroom. She was situated on a large bed with cream sheets and pillow cases, and a deep green cover on was soft and very comfy.

Next to a bed there was a night stand with a lamp on it. The wallpapers in the room seemed to blend with the tones of the room, the cream, deep green, and brown were the colors that penetrated her eyes. She slowly arose from the bed, and looked around the room. It didn't seem familiar. All of it around her was very unknown, and even though it seemed like a warm furnishing room, there was coldness inside, of such intensity she felt it in her bones.

The surrounding was weird and unknown, but she knew she had to get out as soon as possible. There was nobody guarding her, so she thought if she was quiet enough she could get away. Looking out of the window she noticed she was in a house on the second floor, so, she should probably find the staircase first. As she slowly made her way downstairs, she took notice of this large house she was in. It seemed very old and very beautiful too, she wouldn't deny that.

Once she was on the lower floor, she made sure her steps were even more quieter, because there were voices coming. It seemed like there was an arguing going down.

„I don't give a damn what you think!" a very deep voice said. „All you do these days is bossing around like some big chief and everybody should just follow you around! Well, forget it! You're not bossing me around, Stefan!"

„Like you would ever listen to anything I say!"

„Stefan, please calm down, don't do this!" there was a third voice, and it seemed it was a womans.

She slowly raised her feet using the opportunity of the fight that was going on in the room. She didn't have many time, so she had to work fast. looking at her feet, she carefully made her way further trying to get to the exit.

„Going somewhere?" a deep voice asked, and in a blink she saw another set of feet dressed in black combat butts in front of her. She raised her look and found the pair of the bluest eyes she had ever seen. A pale face, black dark hair, and black clothes made his eyes poop even more. For a moment she forgot what she was doing, she was trying to get away, and this guy is the monster she remembered from earlier.

Her face changed into horror one, as she started screaming again, and turned around to get away from him. But, the moment she turned a set of strong hands took her by the elbows, and she saw a man with the sandy brown hair and nice brown greenish eyes trying to calm her down.

„Bonnie!" Elena yelled behind Damon, getting closer to her and her boyfriend.

„Calm down. Breathe." Stefan was saying calmly.

„O my God, Bonnie!" Elena came behind her and grabbed her to pull her in a hug, but the girl pushed the both of them away, and started running towards the door.

Damon just watched her do that as he stood and act disinterested.

Elena started to go after her, but Stefan pulled her away and went by himself.

„Why didn't you stop her, Damon?!" Elena said looking after her boyfriend and hitting Damon on the shoulder.

Stefan managed to get to Bonnie outside as she was trying to run to the woods. He took her by the hand and turned her around.

„No!" she shouted „Let me go! Don't touch me!"

Stefan did let her go „Ok. I won't touch you, but you can't run either."

She looked at him with tears in her eyes and she sobbed slowly, watching him closely.

„Ok." She answered quietly.

„Ok" Stefan confirmed.

They both watched each other closely and breath heavy. Stefan put his hands on his hips, and Bonnie looked around her.

„You shouldn't run" he said „and if you do, I just have to warn you, I am faster than you, so you can't run away."

„What do you want?" she asked full of fear.

„I want to help you."

„But, I don't want your help!"

„You need it." He tried to convince her.

There was silence between them.

„How can you help me? You kidnaped me and took me away.."

„Kidneped you?" Stefan was confused „What do you mean kidnaped you?"

She closed her mouth refusing to answer his question.

„Ok, Bonnie, we really need to have a conversation."

„How do you know my name?"

Stefan looked at her in surprise.

„Do you know your name?"

„Of course I know. What do you think I'm stupid or something?" she said offensively.

„So you remember?"

„I don't remember anything! I have no idea who are you or where am I or how did I get here? Care to explain that to me?"

„Wait, what is the last thing you do remember?"

„What are you talking about?"

„Please, tell me, Bonnie."

„I'm not telling you anything. I don't trust you."

He stopped for a moment and thought about the situation.

„Ok, how can I make you to trust me?" he asked concerned.

She crossed her arms over her chest and looked closely at him.

„You answer my questions and I'll think about it."

„Fine. I can answer your questions, if you answer some of mine?" he tried to make a deal with her.

„Why should I tell you anything?"

„Because, if you want me to tell you anything I need you to tell me something, too. Trust is a two-way street, Bonnie." He said full of wisdom.

„Ok." She answered quietly. She was still suspicious of him, but she there were things she needed to know.

* * *

 _ **Thank you!**_


	2. Chapter 2 - Found?

Chapter Two - Found?

Stefan takes her to the back side of the large house. There are a lot of tries, and green grass, with bushes, stone paved path and steps leading down to a big backyard. She looks around them and takes in the beautiful surroundings.

„We can talk here. No one will disturb us." Stefan says. „You said you had questions. Ask me."

Bonnie crosses her arms against her chest and straightens herself up, putting a serious face on.

„Who are you?"

„My name is Stefan. Stefan Salvatore."

„Where are we?"

„This is my home. The Salvatore family house, situated at the end of the Mystic Falls."

„The Salvatore house? The boarding house?"

„Yes. You do remember." He says curiously, but confused.

„I remembered my Grams use to tell me stories about it."

„Oh." He diverts his look from her, felling the shame about the part he played in her Grams destiny. He takes a seat on a low stone wall and crosses his legs in his ankles. Bonnie stands in her place on his opposite.

„What about the place I was before? That old house?"

„That was on old Fell's property."

„It seemed like some haunted house." She says frowning.

„You can say like that."

„Why was I there?"

„Ok. Why don't you answer some of my questions, now?"

„No, I want you to tell me why I was there."

„In order to tell you that I need to know something." He says and clears his throat before continuing. „What is the last thing you remember?"

She diverts her eyes to the pavement and doesn't speak. He waits for her answer, but she refuses to talk. He exhales deeply.

„I understand it's tough for you to trust me, but it's really important for you to be honest with me, Bonnie." He says sincerely.

She raises her look to him, and hesitantly decides to answer him.

„I don't know. I don't remember everything." She shakes her head in confusion, and grabs her forehead, rubbing her skin frustratingly.

„My memory is kind of foggy. I remember I was in school and we had history. I..I don't know, I can't tell you with certainty."

„We had history yesterday." He tries to clear that up for her.

„We? What do you mean we?" she looks at him questioningly.

„We go to school together. We had classes yesterday?"

„I don't remember you." She says a s matter of fact. Her brows knit together and she starts breath heavily. „If we go to school together I should remember you." She says confused and alarmed. „Why don't I?"

„It's ok. There's a lot of people in school. It's understandable you don't know them all. I don't either." He assures her.

„How did I got here? And to that haunted house?" she asks with her voice going up a few decibels.

„There was a dance yesterday. At school. You remember that?"

„No..."

„The theme was the decade dance. The 60's."

„Ow..." she says, looking down at her colorful dress and red boots. „That explains the outfit."

„Yeah." Stefan smiles.

„Well, what happened? I still don't get how I got there...or here?"

„Listen, do you know Elena? The girl inside you saw?"

She shakes head no.

„You don't remember her?" Stefan asks slowly, his forehead wrinkling.

„Does she go to school with us too?" she asks curiously.

„Yes. She does. You really don't know her? Elena Gilbert?"

„Elena." She repeats her name in thinking. „I knew an Elena before."

„Okay?"

„Elena Gilbert. Yeah. We went to preschool together. And school. We were friends, too." She smiles. „But, we estranged. We started third grade and she found other friends and changed school after awhile. I think it was a private school, her parents made her transfer."

„You're saying you lost touch after that?"

„Yes. So, wait, that's Elena? Elena Gilbert?" she asks pointing her finger to the house curiously.

„Yeah. That's her." Stefan says confused.

„Wow. I didn't think about her in a very long time. I totally forgot about her." she says with interest.

„Is there somebody you do know from school?" Stefan asks her.

„Of course. I have friends, a lot of them." She tells him as a matter of fact. „You still haven't said to me how did I got from the school dance to that scary house?"

„Right. Well, you went there after the dance."

„I went there? Why would I do that?"

„Well..." he doesn't know how to explain this to her. He doesn't know if she remembers her 'special ability'.

„Did I go alone or?"

„No. There was...well...other people." He says starting to squirm on his seat.

„Other people? Like from school?"

„Yes. You know, kids and haunted houses..." he explains.

„Oh!" she nods.

He fells bad about lying, but the last thing she needs right now is some crazy vampire/witch shit.

„So was there an accident?" she asks him „Was I drunk? Did I fell? How exactly do I not remember this?" she keeps listing the questions, and Stefan blinks a few times, thinking about what to tell her.

„Yes..." he says not looking at her. „You hit your head." He lies.

„Oh, wow!" she exclaims. Her eyes wide and she licks her lips, trying to remember anything.

„Who more was at the house?" she keeps with the questions.

„Huh?" Stefan looks at her a little lost.

„Who was at the house beside you and me? You said there were other people?"

„Yes. There were. Um... Elena was there, and Jeremy."

„Who's Jeremy?"

„Elena's younger brother." he answers and she nods.

„Was Ticky there? Or Dana?"

Stefan frowns at her question, but straightens up and decides on the answer.

„Yeah. They were both there." Another lie. „You remember them?"

„I don't remember them being at the house. But, if I went there, it must have been their crazy idea." She reasons.

„Right."

She bits her lips for a moment in deep thought. Stefan stands in front of her, waiting for her to say something. She sighs deeply and looks up at him.

„Listen, Stefan. Thank you for explaining me this. But, I should probably go home. I mean, my parents must be worried sick."

She starts to leave, but he stops her with grabbing of her elbow and turning her to look at him.

„Wait a second." He says, and sees that her eyes are wide and a little scared, so he lets her go. „We should talk a little more."

„Ok. Listen, I'm sure you are a very nice guy and all..." she takes one step back from him.

„But, honestly, you're kind of freaking me out. You act like you know me, and like we are some really good friends. But I don't know you. Like...at all."

„I understand. But, we actually are friends." He tries to convince her.

„Then how come I don't know you?" she says shaking her head lightly. „I don't remember us meeting or hanging out ever." She starts to get nervous.

„And another thing. That guy inside is very weird. Even weirder then you. Gives me the creeps."

„Damon?"

„I don't know." She says dismissively.

„Yeah, he's my brother." Stefan says.

„I don't care." She says frantically. „Really, I just wanna get home. And I should probably get to a doctor. I mean, if I hit my head and don't remember last night's events, then, I could have a concussion or worse, maybe even some sever brain damage."

„Ok, calm down." He tries to reason her. He puts a reassuring hand on her shoulder, but she shrugs him off.

„No. This is serious. I have retrograde amnesia. I have to get my head checked." She tells him desperately.

„Yes!" Stefan yells. „Exatcly. Look, you may have some head damage, you shouldn't move too much or get too nervous." She looks strangely at him, while he tries to calm her down.

„Look, why don't we get inside and get you all cleaned up, maybe you want to change your clothes? And then, we can get a doctor here. He'll check you out and see if everything is ok."

„But, I may need a CT scan. He can't do that here. Unless you got a CT machine here?!" she asks him incredulously.

„Well, he can check you out and if he says you need to go to a hospital, I'll take you myself. OK?" he's trying very hard to keep her from leaving, but he doesn't want to pressure her, in thinking she's a prisoner.

„I'm not sure about this." She frowns.

„Look, I promise I'll take care of you." And he doesn't lie about it. He really doesn't want anything bad happening to her.

„But, what about my parents? I should at least call them? Or my Grams? I should call her."

„Your Grams?" he asks confused.

„Yeah. Sheila Bennet. Everybody in Mystic Falls knows her. She's like the towns legend."

„Right." He says slowly, understanding that Bonnie thinks her Grams is still alive.

„If you live in town here, you should know her..." she says a little questioningly.

„Yeah, no... I do." He answers. _May as well play along._ „She lives down on Oak street, right? The brown house?" he asks.

„Yes. You do know." Bonnie smiles, and Stefan sighs in relief a little.

„Of course." He says more to himself, than to her.

„Well, can you lent you your phone, so I can call her?" she asks hopefully.

„Maybe... maybe you should get all freshened up and checked, and then we'll call her? Not to worry her, if there's no reason." He tries one last time.

„Well, fine." And she finally caves in.

„Ok, let's get inside." He says putting a hand on the small of her back, leading her back into the house.

* * *

They enter through the balcony door, and Damon and Elena stand next to each other, noticing they just got in.

„Bonnie, Stefan." Elena says surprisingly.

They all stand a little awkward, just watching each other. It's clear, to Stefan they just got inside in the middle of a conversation between his brother and his girlfriend. He doesn't want to think what kind of conversation it was, but he has a felling he wouldn't like it.

He dismisses it, switching his worry to Bonnie again. He turns to her and with a warm look in his eyes asks her:

„Why don't you go upstairs in the room you were and you will see a bathroom across it. You can use it. I'll prepare you some clothes to change in."

Bonnie smile and lightly nods to him. Taking a deep breath, she looks over to the other two people in the room, and her smile fades. She passes them through and disappears upstairs.

„What's going on?" Elena asks Stefan confused.

Stefan just bits his lip and looks to the floor. There is a lot of ground to cover, and he knows this is going to be one hell of a journey.

As a person who likes to be the bringer of sarcastic comments, Damon never fails his brother, leaving him without a word of his own.

„Well, better speak now brother." He smiles as he takes a big sip of his bourbon he's holding in his hand. „Or forever hold your peace."

* * *

„So, she remembers, but not us? She doesn't remember me?" Elena asks her boyfriend, who's sitting next to her on the coach, while Damon is on their opposite in a chair, leaned on his knees and nursing another glass of bourbon.

„She said you went to school together, but you transferred to a private one and lost touch." Stefan nods.

„O my God! How can this be?" Elena exclaims, her hand grabbing her forehead.

„I don't know."

„I mean, I remember, my parents said they wanted me to go to a private school, but I didn't want to. I found friends here, Caroline, Matt, Tyler...Bonnie." She says remembering back in time.

„Yeah." Stefan sighs.

„So, what did you told her to get her all calm?" She asks him curiously.

„I told her to get washed up and I'll call a doctor so he would check on her." he says looking straight ahead at the floor. „I should probably call him." He says and starts to get up from his seat.

„You are kidding?" Damon says, following his brother's move, and standing in front of him, with a hand extended, blocking his way.

Stefan shakes head for no, standing tall in front of his brother. He tries to pass him by, but the Damon stops him again.

„You can't call a doctor now. Need I remand you she is supposed to be hidden. She should be a freaking witness under protection, so Klaus doesn't find out about her!" he yells at his little brother.

„I don't have a choice! She's confused and scared. And she could really have a brain damage. So, I think it's a good idea to get a doctor to check her out." He looks back at Elena, who nods her head in confirmation to him.

„You are crazy!" Damon yells.

„She trusts me!" Stefan points at himself. „And I lied to her! Do you have any idea how hard it was for me to lie to her about all of this?"

„That's your problem, brother!" Damon says smugly. „I don't have a problem of lying, or telling the truth for that matter!"

„That's 'cause you have no conscience." Stefan spits his words on him, taking a step further his brother, in a threatening way.

„And you have too much of it." Damon talks him back, stepping forward, copying his brother's moves. He was never the one to back down.

„Enough!" Elena yells getting in the middle of them, and putting her hands on her boyfriend's chest, backing him up a little. She turns to Damon, who's wearing his signature smirk on.

„Stefan's right. We should get a doctor." She tells him.

„What?!" Damon yells, looking down at Elena „Have you two completely lost your minds?"

„We'll get a doctor, and compel him to forget he was here." She says, the idea popping just on top of her head. „It will not be a problem."

„Unfreaking believable!" Damon screams, looking around the room.

„Elena, can you get her some of your clothes upstairs to her, so she can change in them?" Stefan advises his girlfriend.

„Yes. Of course." She nods, and with one last look on Damon, she leaves the room.

* * *

She sits on the bed in the room she woke up. She just got out of the bathroom, where she washed her face and hands, brushed her hair with her hands, and even put on some moisturising hand cream on her dried palms.

She stands up from the bed and walks down to the study table. She looks over at the books that are laying there and curiously picks up a pen, then a paperclip, and a brown leather notebook. She's just about to open it, when a voice from her right frightens her.

„Hi."

She turns to look at the dark long haired girl standing in the doorway, holding some clothes items in her hands.

„Hi." Bonnie greets her.

They stay silent for a few moments, just watching each other. The girl is really pretty, she has big brown eyes and perfect shaped lips, her skin is in a gorgeous olive tone, her figure is lean and perfect, and her legs are long and nicely shaped.

„You're Elena?" Bonnie asks her.

The other girl nods friendly.

„Yeah. That's me."

Bonnie nods, too.

Elena takes a step inside the room, and points to the garment items in her hands.

„I got you some clothes you can change into."

„Thank you." Bonnie walks over to her, and takes them from her. She smiles tightly to the girl and steps back, setting the clothes on the bed, so she can look at them. Elena brought her a simple blue t-shirt, black leggings and some pretty black ballerina flats with straps and little diamant dots on the front.

„How are you feeling?" Elena asks her still standing behind her.

Bonnie turns around to look at the girl, and shrugs.

„I feel fine." She says, and smiles and rolls her eyes in joke. „Just, my memories are a little messed up.. but, all in all. I'm ok."

„Good. That's good." Elena smiles. She folds her hand in front of her. „Stefan called the doctor, so I guess he should be here soon." She assures Bonnie.

„Oh, good. Thank you for that." Bonnie answers. She turns back to the clothes, while Elena still stands behind her.

„Yeah, it's not a problem." The girl shrugs. She takes a few steps further in the room, and stands a few feet from Bonnie's side, looking at her closely. Bonnie notices this, so she raises her look on the girl.

„It's so weird to see you." She finally speaks after a few awkward moments of silence.

Elena looks at her expectantly, so she continues. „I mean, I remember you when we were kids..." she presses her lips tightly not sure what to say. „But... I guess a lot of time passed, so..."

Elena diverts her look to the floor, biting her lip, and taking a deep hard breath in.

„Yeah...About that, Bonnie..." she looks back at her friend. „You don't remember me after that...at all?" Her tone is a little to hopeful, but the hurt is behind it, too.

„No." Bonnie slowly shakes her head. „I remember you transferred to a private school and I guess I don't really remember you after it."

Elena nods and sadly looks to the floor. Her forehead's wrinkled, and Bonnie can't help, but notice that's how Stefan frowns, too. The girl turns around and walks over to the table, looking around, holding herself on some chair. Bonnie follows her with her eyes.

Something popes to her mind, and she frowns too. She clears her throat to get the other girl's attention.

„I remember" she starts, and Elena turns to look at her. „Well...you know how it is...small town, rumors travel soon...your parents..." she stops for a moment, looking at the t-shirt she's holding in her hands, takes a deep breath in and raises her look back at the girl „I remember...I heard they died in a car accident. And you were in the car with them. Is that true?" she asks quietly.

„Yes." Elena answers holding her breath.

„I'm really sorry." Bonnie says with a sympathetic face expression.

Elena watches her with a breath stuck in her throat, her eyes big and glossy, her mouth opened a little. The expression on her best friend's face, that people normally wear when they feel sorry for you, makes her choke on a breath she finally takes.

Tears start pouring out of her eyes, and she brushes the mucus from her nose with the back of hand.

„Oh, I'm sorry." Bonnie says, taking a step forward.

"Did I say something wrong? I didn't want to remind you of it. I'm really sorry. It's not my business." She tries to comfort the girl.

„No. No. It's fine." Elena says, taking a deep breath „I just...I...I'm fine." She stutters a little, trying to get composure on herself.

She snorts and sobs at the same time, as Bonnie stands in front of her, placing a hand on her arm.

„I really am sorry. Please, I didn't mean to..." the dark-skinned girl tells her honestly, feeling bad about mentioning something she had no business getting into.

„It's fine. Really. I'm not mad." Elena shakes her head, brushing her tears of, fighting the disappointment, and putting a smile on her face.

„Ok." Bonnie says unsure, lets go of Elena and turns around to walk back to the bed. „I should get dressed."

Elena stands in silence for a moment, and then nods her head, takes a deep breath and makes her way out of the room.

„Yeah. I'll leave you." She says in a rush, and runs out of the room.

„Thank you." Bonnie answers quietly, guessing the girl didn't even heard her at all.

* * *

Elena enters the kitchen to find her boyfriend standing by the kitchen counter, a piece of bread in his one hand, and a knife in other.

She stands at the doorway, leaning her right hand on the door frame, watching him with a blank expression on her face. He raises his head to look at her.

„Hey, I made Bonnie a sandwich." He looks back at making the sandwich. „She likes mustard, doesn't she?" he asks.

Elena shrugs „I don't know. The old Bonnie does, but this one.. Who would know?" she says bitterly.

Stefan raises his look to his girlfriend again, her eyes shining with tears, and biting the inside of her cheek, not letting herself to cry. He stops what he's doing, but doesn't move from his spot.

She takes carefull steps over to the kitchen, and sits on the bar stool next to him, with her eyes glued to the marble pattern of the kitchen counter. She swallows hard and her eyes find his'.

He looks at her with a sympathetic smile, his hand sets the knife down, and covers hers in comfort. Elena takes a deep breath and lets herself talk.

„She remembers my parent's death. She says she remembers _hearing_ about it around town.." she shakes her head, as tears start pouring down her cheeks.

„When they died and I got out of the hospital...she was at my house, with me...in my bed, all the time." She swallows again, gains courage to talk more.

„She didn't left my side for a second. If she weren't there I don't know if I would have survived the grief. I don't know. And she doesn't even remember that now."

Her face frowns in sorrow, and she starts sobbing and crying harder. Stefan steps over to her, and his hands hug her warmly, letting her head rest on his chest, and her tears wet his shirt.

„Oh, hey. It's ok. Everything's going to be ok." He says in a quiet, loving voice.

Elena takes a hard intake of a breath and squeezes Stefan's hand around her.

„I just want my best friend back." She cries.

„I know. I know." Stefan holds on her tighter, while she sobs.

„Hey. Look at me." He releases his grip on her and takes her face in his hands, raising it so she would look at him.

„We'll get through this, I promise." He talks to her teary eyes, wet cheeks and stuffy nose.

„I love you." He tells her strongly, but softly at the same time.

She grabs his face with her hands, and blinks a few times to get a clear view at him.

„I love you too." She confirms him. She leans closer to him, and he catches her lips in a loving, soft, comforting kiss.

* * *

What are you doing?" she's startled from a deep voice behind her back.

She changed her clothes and decided to go downstairs so she can wait for the doctor. On her way to the living room, at the hallway she came across a commode stand and on it was a cellphone.

She looked around herself, noticing nobody was anywhere near, so she thought it wouldn't hurt if she just go ahead and used it. She was just about to dial her Grams's phone number, when she heard somebody interrupting her intention.

She jumped in surprise and stared at the handsome intruder. It was Damon, Stefan's brother. Even though she felt odd about Stefan, she sent that she could trust him some way. He seemed nice and very honest.

 _It's all written in the eyes._

Her Grams use to tell her.

Stefan had warm eyes, they were light brown with some green in it. It reminded her of her own eyes, although hers had a little more green in them. Maybe that's the reason she trusted him, there was something very familiar about him.

Damon's eyes, on the other hand...Were a little harder to read. Where Stefan seemed as an open book, Damon couldn't be more closed. They were beautifully blue colored, and seemed very deep. Like a clear ocean, you could get lost in them for eternity. But, there was something icy about them. And it had nothing to do with their color. They were hard... and dangerous. Deadly. Made her skin rise in goosebumps.

„Oh, uhm...I...uh...I wanted to call home." She stutters with the cellphone still in her hands.

„You can't do that." He says shortly to her.

„Yeah." She nods her head. „I know Stefan said after the doctor, but, I remember, I don't have my phone with me...I must have lost it somewhere..." she motions the phone in her hands. „But I saw this cell here, and I just wanted to make a quick call to my parents, so they won't get worried." She finishes with a smile.

Damon takes steps forward and stands in front of her, glaring at her while her smile fades.

„You are not calling anyone." He says sternly.

The tone of his voice is cold and hard, and his look is throwing icicles at her. It makes her shiver, even if the temperature of the house is pleasant. She doesn't move a muscle, as he snatches the phone from her hands, and she blinks in shock. Her eyes are following him closely, and he trys to scare her more, by leaning dangerously in her space.

„Damon." Before he has a chance to do or say anything, his brother interrupts him.

Damon rolls his eyes and turns around to face his brother. Stefan is now glaring at him, and it seems as if he is trying to telepathicly communicate with him. Stefan's eyes are wide open, and they don't leave his brother even for a second.

Damon shrugs at his brother, and turns to leave the hallway, but not before throwing a devious look to the confused witch.

„Hey." Stefan calls for her, and looking directly in her continues. „Why don't you come at the kitchen, I made you something to eat." He says, and she follows him.

„Ok."

She stands at the kitchen counter, where Elena is, looking better than before, setting a sandwich on a plate and pushing it towards Bonnie. Stefan stands next to Elena with his hands on the counter.

„I'm sorry about Damon." He apologizes to her. „He can be...crancky."

„Can I call home?" Bonnie asks ignoring Stefan's comment. She pushes the plate away from herself, and with a note of fear in her eyes looks over at him and his girlfriend.

He shares a look with Elena, and when the girl takes a deep breath he answers.

„Listen, Bonnie, about that... we should tell you something."

Just as the last word leaves his mouth, there's a knock and doorbell. They all look at the hallway from where the sound is coming from, but Stefan comments it.

„That's probably the doctor."

* * *

 _ **So, the 2nd chapter is here! I wanna thank you all for the wonderfull reviews you left on the first one. They really inspire me to write!**_

 _ **Also, I know there's a lack of Bamon for now, but I just wanna cover the start of the story and at this part Bonnie and Damon didn't had a lot of unnessesary contact, but there will be planty in the next chapters!**_

 _ **I wanna apologize for my grammar, too... English is not my first language, so I'm kind of strugaling with it, but I'm really tying, hoope you guys don't mind!**_

 _ **Thank you for reading, and I would love to read your thoughts on this, so please leave a review! Kisses!**_


	3. Chapter 3 - Breaking Point

**_Part 3 is here!_**

 ** _Before you go on with the reading, I would like to comment on something. I noticed how some of you think Damon is being very mean to Bonnie, but this is Damon season 2, he was mean to everybody back then. And, frankly, that is the Damon that I liked, not the neutered version he became dating Elena. I do have to warn you, he is gonna continue to be mean to her before they establish a connection._**

 ** _Just a heads up: This chapter contains a mean Damon towards Bonnie and a little bit of Delena at the end._**

 ** _Hope you give it a chance and enjoy!_**

* * *

Chapter Three - Braking point

Neil Harris is a 53-year-old doctor who held his own practice office in Mystic Falls for the last 22 years. His father Samuel held it before him, and probably his grandfather, too. She remembers going to the doctor as a kid when her mother or father took her.

She'd always get a lollipop, because she would always behave. She wasn't one of those children that hate going to the doctor, where their parents had to catch them and demand them into going. She loved the doctor's office. Especially doctor Harris's. It always smelled like antiseptic mixed with menthol and tobacco.

It's weird that the doctor that has treated her family for years is standing right in front of her with the same smell she's used to, and the same wrinkles on the old man's forehead. Seeing him exchanging pleasantries with Stefan, and especially Elena, that he treats very dearly.

She remembers his wife Ellie, that is the nicest women she could possibly meet. The woman who is famous by her pumpkin muffins, and the sweetest, warmest smile you could see.

He checks her vitals, her blood pressure, checks her from possible head damage, checks for bruises or any signs of physical damage...and finds nothing. He tells her to rest because it's possible the cause could be just tiredness and lack of sleep.

He tells her to say hi to her father from him, exchanges sweet words with Elena, and invites them both on famous Mrs. Harris's muffins one Sunday. Then Stefan escorts him out of the room, with a hand on the old man's shoulder, leaning closely to him, and talking quietly to the man.

When Stefan gets back in the room, she jumps off the bed, growing impatient and confused.

„So I can go home now?" she says and grabs the flats Elena gave her, to slip them back on her feet.

„Actually, Bonnie, we should talk about this." Stefan stands in front of her with a hand extended in front of her.

She looks at him frowning, and decides she's putting an end on this.

„No, we shouldn't. Not anymore." She brushes harsh by him and Elena when the other girl tries to stop her.

„Bonnie, just listen to us." Elena has a hold on her elbow, but Bonnie just shrugs her off.

„No. I'm done listening. I'm done with you."

„Bonnie, please." Stefan pleads her.

„No. I'm leaving. You shouldn't stop me." She tells them finally, turning around and exiting the room.

She walks down the stairs and from the other side of the hallway she sees Damon going straight to her. She walks with her head held high, not letting him see that she's a little scared of him.

„I don't remember letting you free to go." He talks rudely to her, and walks straight into her, pushing her slightly back and grabbing her elbows.

„Let go of me." She hisses and tries to free herself from him, but he doesn't even budge.

„Nop!" he tells her with a bored expression on his face.

„I have to go home! Let me go, or I'll call the police." She glares him in the eyes, feeling proud of her straight voice.

„Yeah, like they scare me!" he snorts mockingly.

„Just let me go!" she screams at him and starts punching his chest with her small fists.

„NO!" he yells loudly at her.

it's not exactly his intention to scare her, but that's what happens. She glares at him with her eyes widening, her jaw falling open in awe, and her heartbeat picking up the pace. He feels her shiver and shake slightly, even though she stopped hitting him.

„What is wrong with your eyes?! Why do they keep changing color?" she asks him quietly, looking straight at his red irises, and the veins beneath his eyes. He hasn't eaten the last few hours, and it's starting to affect him.

He takes a deep breath in and tries not to listen to her pumping heart, closing his eyes slowly. When he opens them again they're back to normal, but the witch is not. She breaths slowly and panicky, watching closely his eyes, waiting for them to change again.

He holds her in her place, and after a couple of breaths, she seems to remember she wants to get out of the house, so she starts fighting his grip again.

She manages to get out of his hands for a moment and passes by him, but he turns around and grabs her by the waist pressing her back to his front and hissing to her ear.

„I told you, you are not going anywhere." He whispers slowly to her ear, sending goosebumps through her skin.

„Let go of me." She says through her teeth.

„So you can go to the police? Don't be stupid, little girl. You send one policeman on my door and I'll rip his fingers one by one and feed him to it." He growls.

She gasps in fear. He lets her go slowly and she turns around carefully to look at him. He has red eyes again, veins under them and his teeth look incredibly larger.

She takes a breath in scare, but doesn't move. Something tells her not to move if she does it would be very wrong. So she stares at him in fear and tears come running down her cheeks.

He growls again and take a deep breath in looking her closely, smelling her fear and blood in the air. He can hear her pumping blood in her heart and crossing in veins under that marvelous chocolate skin.

„What are you?" she whispers in fear, as he leans closer to her, and grabs her wrists to hold her.

The moment he touches her skin, it burns him off, letting his skin sizzle like bacon in a fry. He raises his look to her, but she seems confused and lost. He can feel te magic in the air again, and he knows her senses are kicking in for a fight. He smirks evilly at her and grabs her shoulders harder.

His palms start burning him again, but he just applies more pressure. It might seem a little masochist, and in the back of his mind, he knows it is, but the more scared she gets, the more magic she uses. And that just kicks her blood with even more boost and sweetness than normally.

It doesn't last for long, when he feels his least favorite kick back at him. A pain coming in waves, attacking his head. As the pressure on his brain vessels become harder and harder, he starts screaming in pain and crawling down his knees, letting go of the witch.

She looks at him with wide eyes, completely lost.

„Bonnie!"

Stefan and Elena come down the stairs and she turns around in the attempt to escape from them.

Luckily, Stefan uses his vampire speed to cross her and she is frightened.

„What the hell are you people?" she asks in fear, with her eyes wide open glaring at Stefan.

„You're gonna pay for that, little witch!" Damon gets up from the floor and practically spits the words out.

She looks confused and scared but Stefan doesn't let her go. He feels a migraine coming and his hold on her fades, but Damon comes from behind her, grabbing her by the neck and putting just enough pressure not to choke her, but to stun her out.

„Damon, no!" Elena screams behind him, and it's the last thing Bonnie hears before closing her eyes and falling down.

* * *

By the time she regains consciousness, she is all worn out. She opens her eyes and looks around. She puts herself in a sitting position and realizes she was lying on a couch. Next to her, there is a small wooden table with a mug and a hot beverage in it. She notices Stefan sitting across from her on another couch and Elena next to him.

„Hey. You ok?" Stefan asks her leaning forward with his elbows on his knees.

„What did you do to me?" she asks confused, her hand grabbing her through and rubbing it slowly.

„Actually, I did." She hears a voice to her left and notices Damon standing behind a commode with some bottles and glasses on it. A glass of something looking like ice tea is in his hands. She doubts it's ice tea.

„Oh, my God." She covers her face with her palms while whispering something under her breath.

Elena moves from Stefan and comes to sit next to her putting a hand on her back, patting her lightly. Bonnie shakes her off.

„Bonnie, calm down, please." Stefan begs her.

„Calm down?" she says, rising her head to look at him. „How am I suppose to calm down? I don't understand." She covers her face again.

„We can help you understand." Elena consoles her.

„I want my Dad. I want my Mom." she says, starting to rock herself forward and backward in shock.

„Stefan, maybe we should call her Dad?" Elena asks unsure.

„I don't think that's a good idea."

„Then what can we do? I mean, look at her."

„Grams. Yes. Grams." Bonnie whispers. „She...ssshe can help me. She will know. Let me call her, please." She says raising her teary eyes to Stefan.

Stefan and Elena exchange looks.

„It's important you listen to us, Bonnie." Stefan tries to reason her.

„No. I just want to go home. I don't want to be here. I don't know who you are. Or what you want from me." She cries.

„We are your friends." Elena assures her.

„Nooo!" she yells, diverting her look to the girl next to her. „You're not. I don't know you."

„Just let me go to my Grams." She looks at Stefan. „You said you know where she lives. Just take me to her. And I won't tell her anything. Please. I won't tell her about you." She pleads in tears.

Elena looks at Stefan with pain. How are they supposed to tell the truth? It will kill her. Nobody moves from their spot as Bonnie starts to panic more and more.

„I'm not staying here anymore." Bonnie says in a rush and gets up from the couch, taking steps towards the door, and surprisingly nobody follows her. Nobody even seems to notice she is going straight to the door.

When she gets to them, she turns the knob, but nothing happens. She can't twist it completely, or open the door. She turns around and looks at the three people in the room.

„You locked me in?"

Stefan and Elena look at the floor, so Damon provides her an answer.

„Yup. We never lock the door but, congratulations, you made it happen for the first time in this century." He diverts his eyes to his little brother, who shrugs his shoulders.

She starts to kick the doors and twist the knob with more force, but nothing happens. She growls frustratingly, turning around and looking around herself. She grabs a vase sitting on commode nearby the door and smashes it on the door.

„Told you we should've tied her up." Damon says.

„Let me out!" she screams.

„If we would have that intention, we wouldn't lock the door, honey." He tells her.

Elena stands from the couch and takes a few steps further towards Bonnie, who is standing now on the top stair of the living room.

„Look, we need to talk to you, but you need to listen to us. We want to help you, but you don't give us the chance to show you we don't want to hurt you."

„I want to go home. And I want to see my Grams." She says with her arms crossed „Let me see her, please, or, at least, call her."

Elena swallows hard and taking a breath cautiously asks her friend:

„Bonnie...? What exactly do you remember about your family?"

Bonnie takes a deep confusing breath. „What?"

„I have to tell you something." Elena says looking at the floor. She takes a few more steps closer to her, lifts her look on her and starts answering. „Your parents are divorced. You live with your dad only."

„What are you talking about?" Bonnie says confused with her head lightly shaking. „I live with my parents. Both of them." She says with certainty.

„No, you don't." Elena denies.

Bonnie shakes her head, frowning.

„I'm sorry, but, it's true." The Gilbert girl tells her. „They are divorced. Your mom left when you were five years old. And she never came back."

Bonnie's mouth drops. She looks at Elena with wide eyes, as if she is seeing her for the first time.

„And your Grams..." she stops her.

„What?" Bonnie asks her angrily „What are you gonna make up about her? And careful what you say!"

Elena looks at her but doesn't speak.

„Elena.." Stefan tries to warn his girlfriend, but she just shakes her head.

„I am so sorry..." tears fill her eyes and she doesn't tell her anything more.

„What does that mean?" Bonnie asks, but the other girl doesn't answer. „Hey! What do you want to say with that?!"

„She's dead." Damon says suddenly. How ironic for him to tell this to Bonnie. It's usually her that reminds him of this.

She looks at him in surprise. „Wha-..." she can't even speak.

„It's true. Your Grams died a while ago. She's dead." Elena confirms.

Bonnie looks at Elena, diverts her look on Damon again, and finally Stefan. The three of them have the same face expression on their faces. She shakes her head in confusion, grabbing her forehead, not knowing what to believe.

She takes a large breath in and looks at Elena again.

„You are such a bitch!" she screams at her. „Just because your parents are six feet underground, doesn't mean everybody's family is screwed up like your is!"

Elena gasps at her friends words, diverting her look to the floor, taking a few steps back, hugging herself.

Stefan quickly gets up, and goes to Elena to hold her, but she just lightly pushes him off.

„I'm sorry you think like that." Elena tells her, taking more courage to continue „But I'm not like that."

„No. You're even worse." Bonnie says lowly. „You all are." She looks at all of them „You hold me hostage in this house and make me believe something that is not true! You talk shit about my family, pretend you are my friends and you expect me to trust you?! You are crazy!"

She gets hysterical and starts to kick the floor with Elena's flats still on her feet. She grabs the mirror on the wall and smashes it down while screaming. Elena sobs in Stefan's arms, and when Bonnie kicks a small table down, knocking the tea on it, Damon decides to take over the situation.

„Enooooooughh!" he yells, making Bonnie look at him for a moment, but there is no fear in her eyes, just anger.

He hurries towards her, grabs her by the elbow and starts dragging her out of the house.

„What are you doing? Let me go, you jerk!" she protests, but with no luck. He has a strong grip on her and doesn't plan on letting her go.

As he takes the key from his pocket and unlocks the front door, Stefan and Elena start to panic.

„What are you doing!?"

„Damon, where are you going?!"

„No, don't hurt her!"

„Damon!"

He looks at his brother and Elena over the shoulder and says:

„Relax! I'm not gonna kill her!" he says mockingly, and looks at Bonnie with viciously: „We still need her."

With that, they are out the door. He drags her towards his car and opening the door, he let's go of her hand, pushing her at the car.

„Get in!"

She looks at him and the moment he lets her go, she tries to escape, but he grabs her before she can even think about where to run. He pushes her to the car and her back makes contact with his door.

„Auuu!" she gasps when her ass hits the back door of the car.

He puts both of his hands on top of his blue Camaro, one at each her side, so she has no chance to escape.

„Now listen up, you little witch!" he bends in his knees a bit so he can look her better at her frowned face. „You are messing with my patience, and I don't have very much left of it." he comes more closely to her face and she tries to back up from him, looking him straight in his blue eyes.

„Now you're gonna be a good little girl and do exactly what I say, you got that?"

She lifts her chin up, and sasses him:

„I don't take orders from you."

He grabs her chin strongly with his hand and she tries to push him off, but be steps only closer to her, pressing his body on hers, and tightens his hold on her face, as she frowns in pain.

„Oh, you're gonna start taking them." He promises her lowly. „And if you piss me off, even a little bit, I will rip off that pretty little skin of your face, and lick it until you stop bleeding and breathing."

The threats he gives her are pretty original, she can give him that.

He lets her go, and nods to the open door of his car.

„Now get in."

She hesitates for a moment but does it anyway.

* * *

The drive is surprisingly quiet. She throws him a few nasty looks but never dare, to say anything. He, however, is cold like steel, and never passes her one look, his eyes straight on the road, determined.

When they arrive, he turns off the engine and steps out of the car. She doesn't move from her spot, until he goes to her side of the car, and opens the door to her, with no words. She cautiously steps out, crosses her hands tightly and looks around.

Thera are trees all around, beautiful green grass, and stone monuments. Above her head, there is a large sign, and it says: „MYSTIC FALLS CEMETERY".

„Why did you bring me here?" she asks him, with a hint of fear in her voice.

He looks at her and says:

„So you can see it yourself, nobody is lying to you." His voice is not malicious anymore, it's not spiked with venom and anger, quite the opposite. It's almost caring and slightly affectionate, but still strong and rough.

„Com' on." He tells her and doesn't feel the need to have a hold on her because he knows she won't run away now. He walks in front of her, she follows him in silence.

His steps are hard and he looks at his feet while he walks, not raising his head up. She notices it but doesn't think about it. He stops all of a sudden and she almost bumps into him. She passes him by and throws him a questioning look. He nods his head in a direction and says:

„There. Go. I'll wait here." He says slowly and takes a step back, looking at the ground again.

She's confused by his behavior, and more with him letting her go alone. She hesitates, but goes furthermore, looking at the tombstones, and walking among them.

She stops in her step when she sees it. A gravestone, under a tree, with the writing on it:

SHEILA BENNETT

BELOVED GRANDMOTHER

It forces out the breath of her lungs and stings her eyes with tears. She grabs her stomach with one hand, and another rushes to her mouth to muffle down her sobs. She takes small steps closer to the tomb and grabs the gravestone with one of her hands.

Her Grams is laying here. This is her actual grave. She feels helpless, and every breath she takes is hard to inspire. Her whole body hurts, and she falls to her knees, only to cry even harder. Everything around her fades away, the only thing she can focus is the pain inside her body and writings on the gravestone.

Damon has his back turned on her, waiting for her to get her grief out. It's hard to explain why he has brought her here, and it may seem malicious. But he just wants her to remember everything properly.

He can hear her cries and understands her pain, but he would never admit that. He knows her Grams's death was in a big part his fault. Again, he would never admit that. But, he leaves her there all by herself, not daring to take the steps closer to her.

Even if he wanted to swallow his pride and comfort the girl, he doesn't fell worthy enough. He knows the girl in the question has more value and dignity he has ever had. He knows that the body of the woman buried over there has more worth and achievement than he would ever admit.

He doesn't want to stain this family with his dirty and miserable steps over the ground where one of them lies. So he straightens himself up, taking a stone hard posture, and acts as if he's not affected by the scene playing behind his back.

But he can hear her sobs and his face twitches involuntarily every time she takes a large breath in, that ripples through her chest. His stomach twists with every tear that escapes her eye. His throat burns every time she calls her Grams desperately. He feels her pain and knows there is absolutely nothing that can ease that up. Again, he would never admit that.

* * *

The moment they step inside of the boarding house, Stefan and Elena see something has shifted. Bonnie's face expression is tired and drained. Her eyes are poufy and red, her nose is stuffy, and she looks very pale. Her body is barely holding the stand, and she never looks their way, only the floor.

„Bonnie?" Elena asks worriedly, and looks over to her friend, but she never moves a muscle. Stefan and Elena both look at Damon who's pretty different than before. He too looks drained. He passes a quick look to the witch on his left and then turns to Elena.

„Take her to bed. Let her get some sleep."

Seeing that Bonnie doesn't protest Damon's words, Elena nods her head and walks over to her friend to catch her arm and slowly leads her upstairs, which Bonnie follows with no word.

„What happened?" Stefan asks his brother once the girls are out of the room. „What did you do?" he watches as Damon pours himself a glass of bourbon and downs it in one sip.

Damon walks with and empty glass around the living room, which is clean now from the broken glass Bonnie smashed.

„Nothing," He says almost growling „Just what she needed to shut her up."

Stefan watches him closely, but can not read anything from his older brother's face.

„She is very fragile, Damon. We can't upset her more than she is."

„Did she seemed upset right now, little brother?"

„She seemed...different. And you do too. So, I just want to know what did you tell her."

„Nothing you already didn't. I just confirmed what you told her."

„I still don't get it."

„You don't need to get it," Damon says angrily. He tilts the glass in the air so that he can drain the last drops of bourbon in it, and sets it roughly on the table.

„You just need to leave me alone." With that, he leaves the house.

* * *

Later that night, after they went to sleep, Elena is at the kitchen having herself a glass of water. She hears the front door open and close, and in a few moments, Damon walks in with a paper bag in his hand.

„Hey, you're here." She greets him.

„I live here. It's my house. What's your excuse?"

„I own the house." She reminds him.

„Touché," He smirks.

He opens the fridge door and starts tumbling something inside, that she can't see, but doesn't really bother to inspect.

„Where were you?" she asks him.

„Out," he says, not moving his stand from the fridge.

„What did you do?"

„Do you mean 'did I hurt anyone?'" he raises his look over the fridge door to her.

„Well, did you?"

„I don't think you're gonna like the answer." He looks back down, making order in the refrigerator.

She looks at him disappointedly and sighs heavily.

„Oh, stop pouting. Nobody died at least." He closes the door of the fridge and smashes the paper bag in the trash. „It was just 'snatch, eat, erase'".

„There are blood bags in the house." She reminds him, as he washes his hands in the sink, and wipes them on a kitchen towel.

„Yeah, well, I had a desire for something fresh." He tells her, and stands beside her, looking her intensely.

She shakes her head to him. He leans more forward to her, passing her one of his seductive looks and one corner of his mouth goes up when she diverts her look on the kitchen counter.

„Stefan's asleep?" he asks her.

She nods for yes. He takes one more step closer to her. She takes the glass and drinks the water trying to avoid his piercing look. She can feel his smirk on her.

„And our little goldfish?"

She frowns.

„Goldfish?" she asks, but she knows what he was thinking, just doesn't like the insinuation.

„The witchy goldfish with a three-second memory?" he mocks.

She looks at him disapprovingly, and his smirk grows deeper.

„Bonnie is sleeping." She tells him with a hint of anger in her voice. „Since you brought her back, she's been sleeping like a log."

„Good." He says, putting his palms on the kitchen counter.

„Are you gonna tell me where did you take her?" she bravely raises her look to him.

He doesn't speak, just turns around to find a glass from a kitchen cabinet.

„Damon." She warns him.

„What does it matter?" he asks annoyed. „She's fine." He takes the jug of water and pours himself a glass.

„I am not so sure about that."

„You don't trust me?" he takes a sip of water and asks her curiously.

„You know I do." She says, and he smiles. „When it comes to me, I trust you completely. But when it comes to anybody else, I am not so sure, Damon."

His smile fades away, seeing the truth of her words in her look. It pains him to know she doesn't approve of him. He would break the world apart for her, and she doesn't even see it.

He diverts his eyes from her for a moment.

„I just confirmed what you already said to her. That's all. I didn't do anything to her."

„I hope not." She exhales.

„You really think that low of me?" he asks her furrowing his brows.

„It's not about my opinion of you, Damon. It's about what you are capable of, and how that scares me." She tells him honestly.

He tries to dismiss her answer. „Let's just hope, when the witch wakes up, she'll be in the game for knocking some original heads."

„Is that all that you see in her?" Elena asks him curiously „Just a witch to cast some spells? Don't you see there's more in her than her magic?"

He shrugs his shoulders.

„She is a person. She is good and kindhearted, and she's sweet-tempered...she a very good friend. My best friend." Elena tells him sternly.

He nods. „You forgot extremely judgemental. And stubborn." He smirks.

„And you are a lost cause." She says angrily and puts the glass on the kitchen table, preparing to go off to bed, when he grabs her elbow and pushes himself into her. He speaks slowly in her ear with his seductive voice.

„Maybe you could show me the right way..." he strokes her hair around her face and watches her intensely. „Or you could let go and let me show you the wrong way." He lightly kisses her hair and slowly take a step back, still smirking at her.

She blinks a few times and takes a deep breath in while looking away from him. Then she diverts to look him in the eye and says:

„Well, you just said it yourself. I could let go," a small amount of hope spikes in his chest, „but it would be wrong. And I don't do wrong, Damon. Not with you, at least."

She pushes roughly beside him and marches out of the kitchen leaving him alone and affected. He knows she hates when he's teasing her like that, but he doesn't know any other way.

He seeks for her approval and words of hope but never seems to get any. She ignores his indirect questions of her feelings for him, but he doesn't lose hope. Elena hurts him every day more and more, and still he doesn't stop from pursuing her.

He doesn't feel the need to go to her directly and open because everybody in Mystic Falls know how he feels about her, but she continuously keeps hurting him. She just preaches about her love for Stefan, and he never gets a word out of her mouth.

It feels like torture because he knows he's under her skin, but she ignores him so strongly and he asks himself why does he let her torture him like that.

* * *

 _ **Thank you! Reviews are welcomed!**_


	4. Chapter 4 - Opening the gates of truth

Chapter Four - Opening the gates of truth

 _She's lying on the hard cold surface. Her cheek is pressed against the cold stone floor, and her hands are in level with her head. Her white long dress is smudged with dirt and blood on it. But it doesn't feel like it's her blood. She feels the coldness on her bones, she feels the brisk air coming through the large window on her opposite._

 _The window also provides her the only light in the cold stone room. The full moon is shining and lightning the part of the floor she's lying on. Her eyes are wide open, but she can't see anything except the square brightness she's in. Everything else around her is dark and unknown._

 _The silence is deafening, and she begins to hum quietly a melody. Her lips are dried and her voice is raspy when she starts to mumble the words of the song._

„ _Starlight... sta-r-bright... First star I see... tonight"_

 _The original song is much faster and in a happier tone, and the way she sings it, it's unrecognizable. But it helps her think of something, anything. Her mind feels blank and the silence is cold and scary, so she keeps on the singing off key._

„ _Can't you hear-... my plea... to you"_

 _She doesn't move from her spot, it's like she's glued to the floor. She feels gooseflesh in her right foot growing, but she keeps on singing to get her mind off of it._

„ _Won't you... make-... my dreams... come true"_

 _She takes a large intake breath, but it gets caught up in her throat, and suddenly she feels her heart picking up the pace. Her mouth and throat are dry and so are her eyes, it's like she's dehydrated. Ironically, her dress feels heavy from the humidity and blood that half dried already._

 _She tries to keep on singing, but her sore throat doesn't let her, so she keeps the humming inside her head._

 _A strong bump interrupts her song, and she jumps on the floor in a sitting position. She looks around herself but sees nothing. She breaths heavily, and she feels like crying, but her eyes are so dry, that it hurts to blink them._

 _She listens carefully, but there is only silence around her. Still, she knows, it's here. It's in the room, with her. Surrounding her, circling her around her like a prey. She hugs her knees close to her chest, trying to protect herself from it. But, the room begins to feel smaller and stuffier. The oxygen is drifting out of the room, and she can't stop it. The light from the moon is the only help she has, the only ally that provides her an inch of hope._

 _But then, the light starts to get smaller and she can see how her hope is drifting away. She shakes her head in strong denial and tries to keep the song in her head. But, the air thickens even more, and she's trapped inside. It's coming for her, she can feel it in her bones, it's chasing her and playing her like a children's doll._

 _Her breath sticks in her throat, when it starts to aim at her. It getting closer and closer, and there is no escape from it. She finally finds her voice, when it grabs her like a hawk from a flight, and takes her into the dark._

„ _NOOOO!"_

She jumps on the bed when her eyes burst wide open. She took in her surroundings and breaths heavily. She's laying on the bed, a blanket over her body, and small prickles of sweat on her forehead.

She sits on the bed, her feet dangling from it while she tries to steady her breathing.

She looks around the room and notices that it's different from the one she was in yesterday. The walls are in beige wallpapers, she's on a big queen size poster bed, a mahogany dresser is on the left with a large mirror above it. There are wide corner windows beside the dresser. The doors are on the opposite of the window, and next to them, there is a big mahogany closet. The floor is covered in a large beautiful Persian rug and there are brown long curtains on the windows.

She remembers Elena bringing her last night in the room, saying her how they prepared her this room so she could be more comfortable. The girl told her a lot more and asked her many questions, but she was too tired to notice. She just lied on the bed, and ignored everything around her, until sleep came over her.

She remembers how earlier that day Damon had taken her to the cemetery, where her Grams was buried.

She closes her eyes, catching a deep breath to calm herself. She stands up from the bed, and walks over to the window, looking outside. She notices this room is set at the corner of the house, which means, it's probably the last room on the second floor.

She tries to remember anything remotely similar from her reality, and it seems everything is different. She remembers how she lived with her parents in her happy home, and how her dad always calls her his 'baby girl', or 'his little bonbon'. How her mother is the best and coolest in the world, and how close she is to her. How every Sunday they go to her Grams's house for a family dinner.

She remembers her schoolmates, the big circle of friends, her cheerleading squad to which she's captain. In her reality, she's the popular girl, the one everybody wants to be friends with, the one everybody loves, and the one every guy in school wants for her to be his girl. So, being in this world seems unreal and crazy, but it seems too realistic for her. Like a bad dream, she can't wake up from.

So maybe, that's it. Maybe it is all just a dream that she needs to play along until she wakes up and goes back to reality. It's hard to be in this alternative place, considering she's friends with the people she doesn't know or remember. But there is another side to it. She knows the problem is not in the people or the house, or the lack of people she remembers. The problem is, this world contains things that are a little more out of the ordinary.

Guys who have weird eyes and teeth, super strength, and super speed. And she's pretty sure she has some superpowers, too.

So she shakes her head, takes a deep breath and decides it's time she confronts it, walking out of the room looking for a way to this reality.

* * *

„Good morning." Elena greets Stefan entering the kitchen, where her boyfriend is slicing up tomatoes. She walks over to him, smiling and kissing him on the lips.

„Morning." He smiles.

„What are you doing?" she asks him, sitting down on a stool, to watch him.

„Making breakfast."

„I didn't know you went grocery shopping." She says frowning. They were supposed to go to the supermarket yesterday to pick up some groceries, but with all the craziness, they forgot.

„I didn't. I woke up this morning and in the fridge I found eggs, tomatoes, milk." He tells her looking her straight in the eyes.

„If you didn't got them...then where did it all came from?" Elena asked with a frown and a confused smile.

„I have no idea." He says.

Elena raises her eyebrows in surprise. But, then she thinks and remembers something.

„Damon," She says. „Last night he brought something in a paper bag. I didn't look what it was.. but..."

Stefan raises his eyebrows. It's funny thinking about Damon and grocery shopping, because even though he eats human food occasionally, he never buys it. Stefan always has to do it. It's sort of their quiet agreement. 'He does the grocery shopping and the dishes when needed, and Damon takes care of the cleaning and dusting.' It usually means hiring somebody from the cleaning agency, which he compels so he doesn't have to pay them.

„Morning"

They both turn around to see Bonnie standing in the doorway.

„Bonnie." Elena says urgently but stays in her place.

Bonnie takes a careful step inside of the kitchen and sits on one of the stools.

There's so much awkwardness in the room. Bonnie looks at Stefan and Elena, and around the kitchen. They both look at her, and between themselves. Nobody knows what to say.

Finally, Bonnie brakes the silence.

„Do...?" she starts „You got some coffee?"

For a moment Stefan and Elena stand frozen, processing what she said as if it was a big amount of information. Then, they both start moving around the kitchen urgently.

„Yes. Of course." Stefan voices.

They are both very lost, getting the cup, pouring the coffee, spilling some on the counter, bumping into each other all the time. As if they are making coffee for the first time in this kitchen.

Bonnie smiles vaguely at their clumsiness when Stefan finally reaches over the counter and hands her the mug. She takes it and silently thanks him, as he backs up a step when she takes her first sip.

They both watch her closely, and again don't know if they should say anything.

„Are you hungry?" Elena asks her after a couple of minutes of silence.

„Oh, yeah, we can make you something to eat," Stefan says.

She shakes her head, but they continued to ask questions and prepare breakfast like they didn't notice.

„Yeah, there's eggs," Elena says excitedly.

„Or something else. Anything else. You name it." Stefan tells her.

„Thank you. But, coffee will be enough."

They both stop what they are doing and stand awkwardly next to the kitchen counter.

„How are you feeling today?" Stefan cautiously asks.

She takes another sip of her coffee and puts the mug down, placing her palms on the counter in front of her.

„That's actually what I wanted to talk to you about." She looks at them, and they both nod expectedly.

She takes a large breath of air and starts talking.

„I am willing to give you a chance, and listen to what you have to say. As well, as answering some of your questions. But, only if you are willing to answer mine." She tells them strongly and firmly.

Stefan and Elena exchange a look, and then Elena speaks:

„We can do that."

Stefan nods, confirming her answer.

„Okay," Bonnie says. „But, I want you to tell me absolutely everything because I have a feeling there is something very weird going on here."

„We'll give you all the information you need to know." Stefan assures her.

„No." She stops him and looks him bravely in his eyes, talking clearly and strongly. „I mean everything."

„What exactly are you thinking of?" Elena asks her frowning.

Bonnie takes a deep breath in and says: „You need to be completely honest with me." she pauses for a moment. „Cause I have a feeling I been sucked in some very freaky alter universe."

* * *

„So, vampires, werewolf's, and witches?" Bonnie asks curiously.

After Stefan and Elena spend the last hour and a half explaining what kind of world she's been, surprising is not the word how she feels. She wanted to prepare herself for any kind of craziness, but the truth is it's far from expected.

„And doublegangers." Stefan mentions.

„Oh." she looks straight ahead, sitting in the living room of the Salvatore mansion, lost in her thoughts, trying to process everything they just said to her.

„Are you okay?" Elena asks her concerned.

„Yeah." She dismisses her question. „Soooo...I'm a witch?" she asks pointing her finger at herself, as Stefan nods to her. „And... you are a... vampire?" she points to him, and he nods again. „Like an actual vampire? With the teeth and eating blood? And all?" her voice rises a little, but he nods again.

She starts nodding her head repeatedly.

„I know it's a lot to take in." He tries to reason her.

„Oh, no. It's fine." She waves it off with her hand, but then, her eyes wide out a little as she focuses on something behind their backs.

„I mean, the things I remember like, with the happy, full, alive family, and normal human friends, and myself as a normal teenage girl, who's only problem were if I like the color green or red more, is totally and completely boring." She snorts hysterically.

„Where on the other hand, here I have a very estranged father, an absent mother, and a dead witch grandmother, with a best friend who's a doubleganger, and has the same looks as the 500 years old ex-girlfriend of her current boyfriend who are both vampires, and I am apparently a witch,..." she looks at them again with her eyes wide.

„...that I get from my very much absent mother's side of the family." She says the words quickly and it is very much seen in her face she is in clear shock.

„It sounds a lot more complicated than it really is." Elena tries to comfort her a little bit.

„It does? Really?" she asks curiously.

The other girl opens her mouth to speak but stops herself.

„Well... No." she tells her.

„Ou woow!" Bonnie puts her hands up and rubs her face in stress.

„Hello, kitties!" Damon sways in the house. He looks around the room, watching his little brother and his brooding face, Elena and her 'the world is a screwed up place and it's all my fault' expression, and then at the witch who looks like she just got spilled all over by a bucket of cold ice water.

„What's going on?" he asks.

„He's a...?" Bonnie points at him with her finger, looking over at Stefan, making a weird face with her teeth and her small hands clenched like in a kitty who's about to scratch something.

Damon raises his eyebrows at her, and then looks at his brother who answers:

„Uhm...yeah, he is."

„I'm a what?" he asks frowning.

„Well, I think I had enough for now." Bonnie says and stands up from the couch. Elena follows her moves and asks her:

„Is there anything I can do for you? Or make you? Maybe you'd like to eat something now?"

„Oh, no. I think I'm just gonna go upstairs and think for a little while." She says and leaves the room.

„What's going on?" Damon presses.

„We told her. Everything." Elena tells him.

„She actually took it pretty well." Stefan comments, looking straight at the table in front of him, rethinking all that happened.

„Pretty well?" Elena turns to look at him. „She's in shock!"

„Well, not to sound like Damon, but, considering we still have undamaged furniture, and you know, our limbs still attached, I would say, yeah pretty well." Stefan tells her raising his eyes to her.

Damon looks at him incredulously, while Elena glares at him, crossing her arms around herself.

„I can't believe you." She scoffs at her boyfriend.

„Well, he is right," Damon comments and Elena diverts her look at him questioningly „I would probably say something like that." He grins mockingly.

„She is in shock! Complete one! And the even worst part of it, that of everything we said to her, she doesn't remember anything, not even the vague stuff." She tells them worriedly.

„Elena, she will be fine," Stefan assures her.

She releases a breath and frustrated throws herself on the couch.

„Well, I guess she will be on her feet very soon, so we can go kill some Originals?" Damon says rubbing his hands together.

„Damon, for the hundredth time, she is not killing anyone." Elena tells him rolling her eyes at him.

„Then how do you propose we deal with this?" he asks her „Need I remind you that the full moon is in a few nights, and Klaus probably plans to break the curse then?"

„I know." She blows a frustrated breath in the air and stands up from the couch, going over to Damon in very confident steps. „But, I won't let Bonnie die for this."

„She might not die." He tells her mockingly.

She looks at him with disappointed eyes.

„No. Absolutely not." She scoffs at him and then look over to Stefan, who stays mysteriously quiet not commenting anything.

„She is the only one who can harness that much power!" Damon argues, and Elena looks at him again.

„It was a NO before any of this happened, and it's even a bigger one now! She has no idea how to use her powers at all, and doesn't even remember that she ever had them, and now I'm supposed to send in a deadly battle for me, her supposedly best friend she doesn't even remember? Not to mention the fact she didn't know how much power to use without killing herself, before losing her memories, and not to mention now!"

„You're not seeing the big picture!"

„No! It's not in the question, Damon!" she screams at him „I'm done talking about it!"

„Fine!" he yells as he turns around to get out of the room. „Your way, Elena!" he says bitterly.

„You could, at least, supported me a little." She says to her boyfriend, once Damon's out of the room.

He doesn't speak but decides to look at his feet, with his arms crossed at his chest.

„Stefan!" Elena calls for him.

He still doesn't answer, but looks at her, and she can read it all on his face.

„You don't think he's right, do you?" she asks, but already knows the answer.

„In some level...he is," He says quietly.

„What is wrong with you?" she asks him angrily. „Do you really believe I would sell out my best friend's life in substitute for mine?"

„I know you wouldn't." he answers quickly „But...you have to admit that this couldn't come at a worse moment."

„It's not her fault, Stefan. I can let her risk it." She tells him honestly.

„I know. But, you have to understand that it's not easy looking at you going in this with no plan." He steps closer to her and hugs her tightly. He raises her chin with his hand and looks her in the eyes. „I love you. I don't want to watch you die."

„I love you too, Stefan." She answers him with tears in her eyes. „But, this is my decision, please respect it."

„It's hard to watch the person you love, give up so soon."

„I'm not giving up." She assures him, stepping out of his embrace, rolling her eyes in defeat.

„It seems like it." He tells her sadly looking down at their joined hands.

„No." She takes his face in her hands and holds it so he would look her in the eyes. „I'm not giving up. I'm still fighting. I just have to find a way to get everyone alive from this. I don't want anyone to get hurt because of me. Especially, not the people I love. We will find another way."

„There is no other way, Elena." He backs up from her, losing her touch on him „It's too late for that." He says and leaves the room.

* * *

Bonnie had a lot of time to think. She was closed up in her room at the Salvatore house, over thinking everything that Stefan and Elena have told her. It seemed a lot, but she couldn't help but think something was still missing.

They were very detailed with some things but also very vague with everything concerning her alone. About her witchcraft and about her accident where she lost her memories.

About an hour and some more of thinking, she knew nothing good could come out of it. So, when her stomach voiced out, she was relieved for a distraction.

She goes downstairs, to look for Stefan or Elena, but they were nowhere in sight.

She decides to go alone to the kitchen to get herself something to eat. She enters the empty kitchen and goes straight to the fridge. She's getting the groceries when a voice startles her from behind.

„What are you doing?"

She jumps in surprise and turns around to see Damon with his wide blue eyes set on her, looking her closely. She gulps quickly, trying to regain some bravery, but being around this guy, it's kind of hard.

„I-umm..." she clears her throat and fidgets the tomato in her hand, looking for a distraction. „I got hungry."

He doesn't say anything, just continues to look at her, while she stands in front of him, frozen in her spot.

He observes her stand and has to notice it's quite different from her usual posture. She's normally defensive, with her strong and brave face expression, her small hands clenched in fists, and her chin held up high. So high, that even though he's much taller than her, she somehow has the ability to be the tallest person in the room.

Right now, she's a young frightened girl standing in front of him. He can smell her fear and read it in her wide green eyes and shaky hands. He sighs and in a small unnoticing roll of his eyes, he curses himself for having a heart and steps closer to the girl, slowly taking the tomato from her hand and motioning her to move a little.

She does what he asks silently, and when he gets more ingredients from the fridge and tosses them on the kitchen counter, her eyes wide even more.

„What are you doing?" she asks him quietly.

„Stefan and Elena are out, so it's my job to keep the guests of the casa de Salvatore satisfied. Right now, that is you." He tells her, to which she frowns susceptibly. „I'll make you something to eat."

„You don't have to do it." She says, observing him, take the knife from the holder, and starts cutting the vegetables on the cardboard.

„Whatever." He says bored and continues to prepare her the dish.

She stands awkwardly in the kitchen, not knowing what to do or say. She just watches him move around the kitchen and thinks how crazy the sight is. A homicidal vampire is cooking her dinner. That's just something you can't make out.

A lot has been said to her about this particular vampire. Stefan and Elena weren't sparing words to describe him. Apparently, he was the bad brother, the one who entered the town raising havoc all around him, and nobody was left out of his mean choices. Especially not her.

He was responsible for her Grams death and that alone should make her hate him. But it didn't slip out on her, how he acted when he took her to the cemetery. It was as if he had some amount of respect and remorse for her loss.

She didn't have the need to explain that to the couple because she felt as if she was overstepping boundaries. Damon may be a mean vampire, but there was something more under that stone cold expression and tough posture.

He made her fear of him, but there was also something different about it. She couldn't possibly compare him to his brother, because where Stefan was compassionate and kind, Damon was brutally honest and unscrupulous.

Maybe it was just deceiving from his blue gorgeous eyes, that made her think he hasn't meant any of the menacing words he directed at her. But, there had to be something more deep and meaningful behind his rough exterior.

He set the plate of pasta in front of her with no words exchanged, and she raised her eyes to the man.

„Wow," She says surprisingly staring at the nicely done plate. It was pasta with Italian hot sausages and tomatoes and it was served like from some restaurant. „It looks great."

That seemed to break the cold and awkward tension in the room, where his eyes flashed a little warmness in them. He leans on the kitchen isle on her opposite and clears his throat.

„So, Stefan and Elena spilled the beans?" he says it like a question, but she knows it's a statement.

„Pretty much." She says casually, picking up the fork and playing with her food.

„Good. That's good." He says shortly, starting to clean around the kitchen.

„They weren't completely honest with me." She says after a moment of silence. His back are now turned on her while he's putting the dishes in the sink. „They told me a lot of horrifying stuff...but something is missing."

He turns to face her and notices she's actually asking him to tell her the rest. He just shrugs his shoulders, like it isn't his concern.

„Are you going to tell me?" she asks him.

„Why would you expect for me to get involved in that?"

„Because you're responsible for a lot of hurtful things in my life and it would be concerned as a way of pay up." She says that with such casualty, that his eyebrows disappear in his forehead.

„Seems to me, that my brother and his girlfriend wanted you to get the impression you should be avoiding me in long circles." His smirk appears sooner she expects.

„Seems to me, too." She tells him smugly.

He takes a step closer to her, leaning on his elbows on the kitchen isle, to be at her eye level.

„Then why don't you take their silent advice and escape my whereabouts?"

It was an intent to scare her, obvious, but she doesn't let him frighten her so easily.

„Because, if it's true what they say, that I am this bad ass, hot shot witch, and you're still walking around alive...it means you're very low on my list of things I should be scared of."

She takes a bite of her food and never looks down from him, holding her eyes straight on him.

It is a sense of enjoyment. Her bravado, the smirk on his face. Just like that, the judgy witch is back. His grin spreads on his lips in a smug way, feeling proud of the fact she still knows how to talk back at him.

The moment of familiarity is cut short from a loud banging of the front door. He looks over to the hallway to inspect who is the rude intruder. His face expression changes. There's no warmness or familiarity anymore. The stone cold posture is back, and Bonnie can't help but feel a little disappointed.

Damon straightens himself up and makes his way out of the kitchen with no word.

 _„What are you doing in my house?"_ she hears him ask the visitor, even though he closed the door on his way out of the kitchen.

 _„What do you think? I'm not here to see you, that's for sure. Where is she?"_ the other person says.

 _„Wow, wait a minute. You don't really think I'm gonna let you walk around my house just like that?"_

 _„I talked to Elena, she said I could come."_

 _„And what gives Elena the right to welcome visitors in my house?"_

 _„It's her house, you dick!"_

 _„Why does everybody keep saying that?"_ Damon asks incredulously. _"It was just a formality, that doesn't actually mean I'm gonna let her have my family heirloom in her possession."_

Bonnie makes her way out of the kitchen, pushing the door open to see what is going on in the hallway.

The two men turn in her direction and she makes a few steps further to them. She takes notice at the guy who is standing beside Damon. He has brown hair and brown eyes. He looks at her with kindness and relief.

„Bonnie," He says her name kindly.

She looks over him and over Damon for a moment who has an annoyed expression.

„I know you." She tells to the guy.

He looks surprised and a hint of hope is visible in his eyes.

„You remember me?" he asks as he takes a step closer to her.

„Yeah," She says slowly. „You were in that haunted house. You were chasing me around."

Jeremy's face falls down and Damon smirks almost in satisfaction while Bonnie is frowning and contemplating what she remembers about this guy.

„Oh." Jeremy exhales in disappointment.

„You're Jeremy, right?" she asks him. „"Elena's brother?"

He nods slowly, sadness visible all over his face.

„Could we talk?" he asks her. „In private?" he looks at Damon for a moment, making it clear he is disturbing him.

„Hell no." Damon answers him with a cold tone of voice.

„I wasn't asking you." Jeremy tells him slowly.

As he tries to step closer to Bonnie, Damon stops him grabbing his elbow and talking him threateningly to step away.

„Jeremy?" a voice comes from the front door. Elena and Stefan enter the house. The brunette makes her way over to her brother watching closely him and Damon.

„What is going on?" she asks frowned.

Damon let go of the boy's arm and looks to the side.

„I came to see Bonnie." Jeremy says looking over to the girl in the question.

Bonnie diverts her eyes from the boy and it is visible she fells a little uneasy around him. Stefan notices that so, he decides to step on her side.

„Maybe it would be better if you do that some other day, Jeremy." He steps in front of the younger Gilbert „Bonnie had a big day today. You should let her rest."

Jeremy doesn't look like he is about to take the hint, but Elena takes him by the hand and leads him out of the house whispering something to his ear.

Bonnie nods to Stefan in gratitude, and he smiles in response. Damon rolls his eyes to the exchange and turns around with no word to retreat to his bedroom. He's halfway to the hall when he hears his name being called.

„Damon."

He turns to see Bonnie standing in her place still.

„Thank you for the food." She says quickly and turns to the kitchen to finish her meal.

Damon's eyebrows rise again. It's a little weird that the girl thanked him, and he's trying to remember if that ever happened before. For as long as he can remember, this seems to be the first time the witch had ever thanked him.

Sure, he didn't really gave her many reasons to thank him before, but it's still weird. Even when he fed Caroline his blood, he was all smug around her trying to get thanks from her, but she didn't even budge. She wanted to make him feel grateful that she spared his life and let him help her best friend.

And just now, she thanks him for the first time ever and the only thing he had to do was to make her something to eat. Who would have guessed?

The only person who looks more surprised than Damon himself is his little brother, who has the same brooding forehead wrinkled with a number of question marks above his head. That fact makes Damon smirk in satisfaction and a grin plastered on his lips as he makes his way to his room.


	5. Chapter 5 - Wuthholding the truth

**_Chapter number 5 is here! I wanted to thank all of the followers and ones who wrote your thoughts on this fic! They really strike me to write more!_**

 ** _This chapter is a bit frustrating...maybe a little Elena heavy, but it's just because the sacrifice is about to set. Once we get that done, things are about to change._**

 ** _Thank you for giving it a chance and reading! As always, reviews are welcomed!_**

* * *

Chapter Five - Withholding the truth

Today was a hard day. Nobody was worried too much about her and her state. Because there were more pressing needs. Stefan and Damon went ballistic early this morning about what Elena did. They were running through the house, going in the basement, and loudly swearing. They called Elena a couple of times on the phone, and tried to talk some sense into her, but the girl never backed down.

Bonnie didn't know all the details because the brothers were a little vague with them, but then again it wasn't a big surprise. Even though Stefan and Elena gave her a big, long story about everything yesterday, she had a feeling there were things they left out. A lot of them.

When she heard they said something about a guy named Klaus and a witch that needs to kill it, she went straight and asked them about it. But, Stefan was strangely quiet, and Elena contemplated what to say, so Damon jumped out and started talking. All he got to say is that Klaus is the bad guy trying to do bad things, and they need-... He didn't get any farther from that because Elena screamed at him, so he just shut his mouth. Then they just dismissed her telling her it was no big deal.

But, she had a very big feeling this Klaus guy was a very big deal, and she had a very big feeling her 'accident', of which they were also stingy with the details, was equally inconvenient to them as to her.

So, today, Elena apparently left with some other guy, named Elijah, and it was a very big problem for Stefan and Damon. She got that from eavesdropping the phone call Stefan directed to Elena while his brother listen to it. She couldn't get much, because somehow, Damon appeared behind the corner and scolded her for being nosy, and send her to her room. She had a feeling the guy was giving himself too much credit, acting as if he was her father or something. Never the less, she turned around on her heel and did it with her head held high.

Things started to heat up more, when Stefan, that left the house a few hours ago brought back a blonde woman, who was in tears with horror written on her face. In that time, Bonnie was sitting in the library of the Salvatore house, while Damon was drinking at the living space. Stefan held the woman under her elbow and asked Bonnie to leave the room while fishing his cellphone from his pocket.

A little after that, Elena came back in a hurry and went straight to the library, where the woman was situated. Bonnie went downstairs quietly and tried to get close to the library, her curiosity killing her, but the only thing she could hear was Elena apologizing to the women. That's when Stefan came behind her back, and told her, to go to the kitchen and eat, because he picked something up for her.

She did as he said to her, slightly frustrated that everybody was avoiding to tell her anything. She entered the kitchen and saw a bowl of hot soup on the counter waiting for her. She also saw the tall and dark 'prince of darkness' as Elena called him. Damon just nodded towards her and kept standing leaning his back on the counter with a bag of marshmallows in one hand, and the other fishing one spongy, sugar consistent piece and putting it in his mouth.

 _'Do vampires eat normal food?'_

Apparently, they do.

She sat down and took the spoon to stir the hot soup a little. She put the other hand on the counter and stared at the hot steam that was coming out of the bowl.

After a few stirs, she took a spoon closer to her mouth and lightly blew the heat coming out of it. It was a chicken noodle soup, and it was... amazing. She enjoyed at the taste of it and closed her eyes at the heavenly touch of the carrots that were melting on her tongue. She unintendedly moaned while she was flipping the veggies and noodles in her mouth.

After a couple of spoons and the sounds of enjoyment, she raised her look over to the man that was standing on her opposite, frozen in his stand, a marshmallow in his hand, mouth slightly opened, watching her closely with a frown on his face.

She sat up straight, squirmed a little on the stool, and put the spoon in the bowl, continuously stirring the mix, trying to keep her face straight. She noticed Damon was still holding his intense gaze to her, so she tossed him a look.

„What?" she asked nervously.

He smirked and put a devilishly seductive smile on his lips, continuing to pop the spongy matter in his mouth. She had a feeling he was mocking her, making out satisfied growls and moans while squishing the marshmallows with his tongue.

She managed to take a bit composer to herself, as she continued to eat the soup. After a couple of mouthful of the delicious meal, she decided it was time to broke the awkward silence in the room with going straight to the point.

„So, what is going on?"

Damon frowned his face and looked at her curiously.

„What are you talking about?"

„Well, everything..." she looked at him as he has grown two heads. „Elena running away, you and Stefan going crazy about it, that women Stefan brought..." It was obvious something was going on.

„I don't follow." Damon dismissed her and gave her a questioning look.

She looked at him with a frown on her face, trying to read something from him but he had a poker face.

„Don't do that." She exhaled frustratingly.

„Do what?" he asked faking bluntness.

„That. Acting as if am stupid or something." She was getting a little mad.

„I'm not doing that." He said quickly.

„Yes, you are."

„No, I'm not."

„Yes. You. Are."

„No. I'm. Not."

They stopped talking and engaged in a staring contest. The guy wasn't backing down from his stupid act and it made her so angry.

„God!" she exclaimed all of the sudden „Would it kill you to be a little nicer?"

„It's possible."

„You know, you are an ass." She told him bitterly, setting the spoon next to the bowl.

„And you are a stubborn little girl." He fired back.

„I don't like you very much." She told him angrily.

„The feeling's mutual."

She stood up from the stool and left the kitchen.

* * *

After Elena's leaving for the second time, the brothers were a little on the edge, especially after the little tension in the hallway, where Stefan fend off Damon's demands for Elena to stay. The women, that Bonnie was introduced as Jenna, Elena's aunt had calmed down after a while and decided to hang out with her in her room. She was telling her stories from her teenage days, as well as her awful choices of man, and Bonnie was actually very pleased with the friendly conversation. Although, it felt oddly convenient while other pressing things were happening, she was being entertained by a new houseguest.

Damon was standing at the bar, nursing a glass of bourbon, while Stefan was sitting on the chair, having a drink of his own, silently watching the crackling fire. The silence was awkward, but it seemed it would become more awkward if they actually started talking. So, they stayed quiet.

A hurricane came through the front door in the appearance of blond locks, blue eyes and a scowling expression on her face.

„Where is she?" the girl demanded.

„Caroline." Stefan greeted her surprisingly, standing up from his seat.

„Knock much?" Damon said.

„No time for pleasantries. Where is she?" she was mad.

„We don't know really." Stefan said referring to Elena.

„What do you mean you don't know?"

„Look, she was here, but she left again, somewhere, she didn't say where, to Elijah."

„Elijah?! What is she doing with him?!" the blond woman asked shocked.

„She un-daggered him last night." Stefan said carefully.

„Wait, wait, wait." She said putting her hand in the air to prevent Stefan from saying anything. „Why is Bonnie with Elijah?"

„What?" Stefan asked. „Bonnie?" he stopped to think about the question. Apparently, they weren't talking about the same person. „No. Not Bonnie. Elena."

„Wait, what? Elena's with Elijah? The Original guy? Why is she...?" she was confused.

„She un-daggered him last night while everybody were asleep." Stefan said again.

There was a moment of silence where none of the three moved a muscle or dared to say anything.

„What the hell?!" Caroline yelled all of the sudden. „What is going on in here? First, I find out from _Jeremy_ , that Bonnie had faked her death with some stupid spell and lost her memories, and now you tell me Elena's with Elijah's...? While you two are...what!?" she waved an angry hand towards the alcohol drinks in the room. "Having a contest who can drink more?"

„We were...thinking about...what to do." Stefan answered her slowly.

„Oh, you were thinking! I see..."

„Look, we're on this, really, we are."

The blond immediately cut him off.

„Elena's somewhere unknown with a thousand-year-old guy she killed a few weeks ago, and Bonnie doesn't remember squat about her life! But, you are on this!" she yelled sarcastically. „Great! That makes me feel so much better!"

„Ok, Blondie! Enough with the yelling an-.." Damon exclaimed growing sick of it, but Caroline was faster on her words.

„Oh, I don't think you are in any position to talk, seeing as all of this is mostly your fault!" she diverted her anger towards Damon.

„How the hell do I become the main offender for every little shit that happens?! That's what I'd like to know?!" Damon yelled frustrated. „Is there some kind of sign above my head that says 'All shit's on me!'?"

„Jeremy told me what happened the other night at the dance." Caroline explained bitterly. „It was your idea for Bonnie to do the spell."

„Has everybody forgot to mention 'Thank you, Damon, for at least keeping her alive'!?"

„Oh, don't worry, I'll thank you. Thank you, Damon, for getting Bonnie amnesia," she screamed and then turned to the other brother, „and Stefan, thank you, for sending Elena on a suicide mission! Really, you guys are great!"

„Caroline, it's not our fault. You know, Elena, when she has her head set on something..." Stefan tried.

„Oh save it!" the female vampire had heard enough. „I don't want to hear any more excuses. Tell me where Bonnie is."

„She's upstairs, in her room, it's the last one on the right." Stefan told her defeatedly.

„Thank you." She says sarcastically.

The brothers just stood in silence, while the blonde turned around and headed out of the room. Then, for a moment she stopped, and turned to face them again, threateningly saying:

„I don't know what the hell you two did to my best friends, but let's get one thing straight. One of them gets out of this, missing one hair on their heads, I'll rip off _your heads_ off and jam them on a wooden stick!"

„So friendly, that one." Damon mocks cheerfully when she is out of the room.

„Shut up, Damon." Stefan said bitterly.

* * *

Bonnie was quietly sitting on the bed listening to Jenna's explanation about behavioral psychology that she was having her dissertation on, when a blonde young woman came knocking on the door, and made herself welcome, greeting them with a big smile.

„Hey!" she said in a high-pitched voice.

„Caroline!" Jenna saluted her. „We weren't expecting you."

„Yeah, I came to see what's new here...you know." She said awkwardly.

Jenna stood up from the bed and looked over to Bonnie, who was looking curiously at the girl who just walked in, and then looked back over to Caroline, who was silently and carefully observing the girl settled on the bed.

„You know.. I kept on talking and talking the last hour. I'm gonna go get something to drink." She said and made her way out of the room. „You guys want something?"

Both girls shook their heads for no, and once Jenna was out of the room, Caroline decided to jump the gun.

„In case you don't remember me, I'm Caroline Forbes. We go to school together... and you are on the cheerleading squad to which I'm the captain."

„Oh! It's nice to meet you. I'm Bonnie Bennett." She stood from the bed and raised her hand towards the blonde, who's smile faded from her face.

„Of course, you knew that already." She said awkwardly shaking the women's hand.

„Yeah. Well, it's not a problem." Caroline faked a smile.

They stood in silence a little more.

„Wait. You said Forbes, right?" Bonnie asked.

„Yes, Caroline Forbes. Does it ring a bell?" she asked hopefully.

„Actually, it does." Bonnie smiled. „You're the sheriff's daughter, right?"

„Yes! That's me!" she said excitedly.

„I knew that!" Bonnie said pointing her finger on the woman. „You live in Orlando with your father and his partner!"

Caroline's smile faded again. Seeing that, Bonnie's smile faded, too.

„Oh... Was I wrong?"

„Well..." Caroline awkwardly started. „I kind of live with my mom. The sheriff. And we are best friends ever since first grade." She said sadly.

„Right. Sorry." Bonnie said a little confused.

„It's ok." The blond tried to dismiss it. Then her face brightens up a little. „But, hey, you were right. My father does live in Orlando with his partner!"

„Oh, great!" Bonnie said excitedly. „Is he gay in this reality, too?"

„Yes! Yes, he is!" Caroline smiled.

* * *

Things tend to get extremely messy. After Caroline left, stuff started to escalate very soon. When she heard voices downstairs yelling, she ran to the library, where Stefan and Damon were beating each other to a pulp. She didn't know what do to. She started to yell at them, but it didn't really do the trick. Until, Elena walked in with some tall, dark haired guy, and yelled for the guys to stop, and they obliged to her request.

There was a great tension in the room, as the brothers looked at the man disbelievably. That's when Elena noticed Bonnie was in the room, and her tension started to grow.

„Bonnie, maybe you should go rest." She took her by the elbow and tried to take her out of the room.

Bonnie wasn't ready to jump on everything this girl said, like the Salvatore's were, so she managed to rip the arm out of her grasp.

„No! I'm not a kid. Stop treating me like one."

„Miss Bennett. A pleasure to see you." Elijah extended his hand towards the witch, but she quizzically looked at him.

„And...you are?"

He frowned. „What...?" he asked confusingly and looked Elena.

„Bonnie, please... could you leave us?" the other girl asked her.

„Why do I need to-?" she didn't have the time to say it completely.

„Bonnie, please." Elena pressed.

The brown skinned women looked unhappy about it but left the room anyway.

„Would you mind explaining what it the meaning of this, Elena?" Elijah asked with a frown. Elena had guilty written all over her face.

Bonnie went upstairs in the room, and frustratingly let a breath out. She was getting tired of this. Everybody were treating her like a child and didn't want her to get involved in their conversations. She tossed herself on the bed, and turned the TV on, which Stefan brought from one of the other rooms. She flipped through the channels and stopped when she got to some rerun sitcoms to watch. A few minutes after she drifted to sleep.

* * *

„So, let me get this straight?" Elijah said while he was walking around the Salvatore library and everybody else was situated.

„I just spent the entire day telling you my family story, blindly trusting you and told you the truth behind Klaus's curse, and you straight up lied to me that you had a witch powerful enough to take down Klaus. I'm I right?"

Elena swallowed hard. „I'm sorry, Elijah. But, it's more complicated."

„Oh, I assure you it is." The man cut her off. „Not only do you have a witch that doesn't have her memories, but you have a witch that has no idea how to use her powers."

„I know. But, if I told you the truth you would have never told me about the potion you have." Elena stood up from her seat and stepped closer to him. „The sacrifice is going to happen and my life and the life of my friends and family is at the strike. I needed to protect them."

„What do you expect from me? Elena, the potion is not the answer. Klaus will still win."

„You said we could kill him after the sacrifice when he is at his weakest. You said it is possible if you remove his heart? Then, let's do that!" she exclaimed. „If we have a group big enough we could kill him! Together!"

* * *

Downstairs were still in a heated conversation. It was about half past 12 when Bonnie woke up. She must've fallen asleep while _'Princ of Bel Air'_ was on. She made her way over to the bathroom and saw the light was still on downstairs. She did her business, exited the bathroom and her curiosity made her go in the opposite direction of her room.

She was just about to put her foot on the first stair when a strong arm turned her roughly around and she was faced with the prettiest blue eyes.

„Where do you think you're going?" Damon asked her while still holding her arm and putting more pressure on it.

„Let me go!" she hissed and ripped herself out of his grasp. She rubbed her arm where he a had his hold.

„What are you doing?"

„God!" she exclaimed frustrated. „I got thirsty! I just wanted to skip to the kitchen to have a drink! Is that allowed in this house? Or do I need to justify myself for every step I make?"

„You don't need to go downstairs."

„Why? So I wouldn't hear something I'm not supposed to?" she asked with irony in her voice.

„Not exactly." Damon frowned „But, now that you mention it, you did spend a lot these past few days, trying to get your ears where they are not called for."

„It's because no one would tell me anything! Everybody just looks at me like some fragile little kid, who is not allowed to listen about her parent's divorce!"

„Well, we got a little more pressing needs, then to worry about explaining every word to you!"

„I don't need you to explain it to me! Just let me be in the room and I'll be quiet."

„Tough luck, Bennett! Even I don't want to hear it anymore."

He looked bothered. Like something was very wrong.

„What is going on?" she asked worriedly.

He just shook his head, and his eyes were glassy while his face flinched.

„Is there something I can do?" she asked almost casually, and he looked her straight in the eye like something just popped into his mind. „Maybe, I could do something." She pressed seeing something was going on in his head.

„There is," He said quietly. He took her hand in his and turned around, walking towards his room. „Com' on."

He led her to his room, and once they were inside, he pushed the door closed. She looked around the room. It was very spacious, with large windows and vintage furniture. At the corner, she saw a small table that was filled with bourbon bottles and glasses. There was a big king size bed that looked very comfy and the room had a private bathroom attached.

She turned to look at Damon who was still standing leaned on the door, with a lost expression on his face.

„Well, are you gonna say anything?" She asked him slowly.

He raised his eyes to her and walked closer to her.

„How much do you know about your powers?"

„You mean... my witch powers?" she asked and he nodded, „Not very much. But, I did notice they seem to show themselves alone. I mean, I don't even do anything, and it happens."

He shook his head. „That's not exactly true. They don't show themselves, they come to the surface because you want them to." When he saw her confused expression he continued. „Your magic works on your emotions. Which means, when you are upset or scared, you protect yourself with them."

„So, they are subconscious?"

„Something like that." He shrugged.

She nodded and took a large breath in.

„Okay. So, what does my magic have to do with whatever it is going on downstairs?"

„Elena's life is in danger. And she needs a witch to help her," he told her seriously.

„How?"

„You've heard of Klaus?"

„I heard you talking about him. He is some bad guy?"

He nodded. „He want's to become a definition of evil. To do that he needs Elena. And she is just stupid enough to give herself over to him."

„Wait. I don't understand. How does he need her exactly?"

„I thought you said I don't need to explain everything to you."

„I have a right to know, Damon." she persisted.

He sighed.

„He wants to kill her."

„Oh, my God!" Bonnie exclaimed, covering her mouth with her hand. „But, why?"

„Because he's evil!" Damon answered as a mater of factly.

„Is he... some kind of demon or?"

„Demon?" he looked at her like she just grew two heads. „There are no demons! This isn't 'Buffy the vampire slayer'!"

She rolled her eyes.

„He's a vampire." He continued. „But, out of latest information, we found out he wants to be more."

„More?"

„Yeah, he wants to become a hybrid, part vampire, part werewolf."

She gasped.

„Is something like that even possible?"

„Apparently it is."

She looked very pale like she was going to collapse any second. What kind of hell has she been sucked in? Her mind was racing and she didn't even noticed her whole body was swaying in shock. Damon straightens her up holding his hands on her shoulders.

„Can you handle this, Judgy?" he asked her softly.

She didn't even noticed when his hands grabbed her. „Huh? What? Who?" She squinted her face on his words.

He smirked teasingly. Totally inappropriate at the moment but her face twitched in a very cute manner, he couldn't resist the smile creeping on his lips.

He cleared his throat and got serious.

„You offered yourself to help. I need to know this is something you can do."

„I don't even know what you want me to do!" she said confused.

„I'll tell you."

But before he could even say another word, Stefan came bursting in his room pinning him to the wall.

„What do you think you're doing?!" he yelled at his older brother and shoved him on the wall.

Damon put his hand on Stefan's shoulder and pushed him strongly away from him.

„Get of off me!" he spat the words.

„You just never learn, do you?!" Stefan yelled not moving his eyes from him. „You can never stop going behind everybody's back, you just need to screw everything up!"

„Fuck off!"

„Elena trusted you, and this is how you repay her?!"

„I thought I stood clear on what I think about her plan?!"

„That doesn't give you the right to manipulate it in your own way!"

„Stefan!"

The younger Salvatore turned his head to the girl standing in the room. She was looking at him angrily.

„Enough! He did nothing wrong! If anything, he's the only one doing right by me!"

„Bonnie, you don't know-" Stefan tried to explain.

„You're right!" Bonnie cut him off. „I don't! I have no idea what is going on because no one will tell me!"

„We're trying to protect you..."

„And you're failing! You wanted me to trust you, but how can I do that, if you don't let me know everything that is going on!"

Stefan looked at the floor and had disappointment written on his face.

„Trust is a two-way street, Stefan." She threw his words on him. „But, right now...I feel like we are both driving in the wrong direction."

She tossed one last look at Damon who was silently listening to her words. She turned around and angrily left the room.

* * *

A knock on her opened door startled her a little. She was trying to distract herself with reading the adventures of Phileas Fogg and Passepartout in their journey _Around the World in Eighty Days_.

„Can I come in?" Elena asked standing still in her place.

Bonnie just shrugged her shoulders and diverted her look back to the book. Elena stood leaning on the doorway not trying to make a step inside.

„I heard what happened before. I just wanted to tell you I'm sorry."

„If you're here to be sorry that Damon told me some information, save it." Bonnie threw the other girl a mad look and then dismissed her glaring back on the book.

„Actually, I was going to say I'm sorry for not being here today..." she looked at her watch „Or yesterday." She smiled. Bonnie stayed emotionless. „I was bussy."

„With what?" Bonnie asked, but before Elena said anything, she answered it sarcastically. „Ow, right, nothing that concerns me!"

The doubleganger sighed. „I understand you feel bad about it."

„I don't know what I feel. I just know that I'm frustrated."

„I get it." Elena tried to convince her.

„Do you?" Bonnie asked her, finally looking back at her. „You say we are friends, but how do you expect me to believe that if you're keeping secrets from me?"

Elena didn't know how to answer that question. When Bonnie saw she had nothing to say she went back to trying to ignore her.

That's when the Gilbert girl moved from her stand and walked slowly closer to the bed on which her friend was laying on.

„I guess you're right. I wasn't so much showing you we are friends, as much time I spend trying to convince you that we are." She said honestly.

Bonnie raised her eyes to her.

„So are you planing on changing that?"

Elena nodded and sat down on the bad, while Bonnie put the book away and straighten her seat, looking at the girl curiously.

„So...you're gonna tell me... everything?"

Elena looked down at her hands folded in her lap and hesitantly answered.

„I can't do that."

„Then you can leave." The Bennett witch said angrily again, pointing the door for the girl.

She turned her face from her and picked up the remote to turn the TV on. Elena was sitting on the bed, not making any sign she was gonna move anytime soon.

There was silence in the bedroom, with only a faint, quiet sounds coming from the TV. Bonnie felt that Elena was probably rethinking her answer in her head. She refused to be disturbed by the girl sitting right next to her, so she stubbornly stared at the television.

„You know, when we were first grade, there were this two girls who liked to pick on us." Elena started talking all of the sudden.

"They always mocked us on the street, they made fun of us, our clothes, our games, and toys. They were awful to us." She stopped and Bonnie looked up at her to see the girl was silently asking for her attention. Bonnie turned the TV off and hesitantly listen to the girl.

„So, one day, at school I was alone at the playground. And they came up to me, started to pick on me. They pulled my pigtails, stretched my dress and screamed at me." She stopped in thinking.

„Why were they doing that?" Bonnie asked curiously.

„Well, everyone thought they did that because they were just mean or... jealous or something." She said and looked a little unsure about telling her this. „But... I knew why. They told me. They were both blond, and were from the founding family's, the Fell's and the Maxwell's."

Bonnie frowned not remembering the names or the girls Elena was talking about.

„Their skin was porcelain white." She admitted quietly, looking Bonnie straight in her eyes. „And I was a part of the founding family's, too."

Bonnie nodded, understanding what she was saying. „But, my family is not one of the founding's." She said knowingly. „And my skin is far from white."

Elena looked at her with a smile on her face and nodded again. It was such a dumb thing, to come across the people who were still so narrow-minded and dense about it.

„They were mean, after all." Elena continued. „But, anyway, that day, when they started to pick on me, you came and pushed them off of me. You screamed for the teacher to come and told on them."

„How very friendly of me." Bonnie said skeptically.

„You did the right thing." Elena assured her „You protected me. You stopped them. They never picked on us again. They did throw us a couple of nasty looks, but they never spoke a word to us again."

„So? What's your point?"

„My point is... you are my best friend, and I knew from that day on I could trust you with my life. And even after that, there were more then a couple of ways you proved that you would protect me at any cost. But, I never got to show you that."

She took a deep breath before continuing.

„You did a spell."

Bonnie looked Elena with her eyes wide. She knew the girl was not talking about their childhood anymore, but something that has happened recently.

„Klaus was at the dance. He possessed somebody else's body and...he came for you. He knew you would protect me and you were the only one who could. So, in order to full him, you did a spell that made him think you were dead, that he managed to kill you."

Bonnie was listening closely, with her wide eyes, and mouth opened.

„And that's when you woke up with no memories. And that's also when I realized something. I wasn't the one who needed protection. Not from those mean girls, or from Klaus. I should've protected you."

Bonnie looked sadly at the girl, who had tears in her eyes. Elena took a deep breath and exhaled.

„So, that's what I'm going to do." She looked at her with a strong and sure look.

„I'm going to protect you and all the people I love and care about because I can take no one else getting hurt because of me.

So... you know what? Damon can yell at me and break the whole house in half, Stefan can try to break some sense in me all he likes...and you can be mad and frustrated as much as you want... But, I am not letting you get involved in this anymore, then you already are." Elena told her with a certainty in her voice and determination in her eyes.

They were quiet for a long time. As much as Bonnie wanted to know everything, she understood Elena wanted to keep her safe just as much. It was a very admired character trait. One that they both probably shared.

But, what Elena didn't have as much as Bonnie is the fact that the later was much more determined. She realized she couldn't look for any help in Elena or Stefan because they just wouldn't give in.

It was very kind and indearing from the girl trying to protect her, but Bonnie had a right to make her own choices. She had a right to decide what she wanted to know and how far would she go to save somebody.

Elena had a big amount of trust in her and the things she did before. And maybe something did go wrong and it resulted in her messed up memories, but that kind of thing shouldn't make her draw back from what clearly was a battle.

Bonnie is not the kind of girl that is going to stand in the shadow and let everybody make choices for her own. She's the one who gets things done. And if something goes wrong, she doesn't bow her head down, she holds it high and goes forward with all she has. So, she wouldn't let this go so easily.

Elena stood up and yawned.

„I'll leave you to rest. It was a very long day."

She was on her way out of the room when Bonnie called her name.

„Elena."

The girl in the question turned to face her.

„Thank you."


	6. Chapter 6 - You know I'm ready

Chapter Six - You know I'm ready

As if yesterday wasn't a fiasco big enough, today managed to be even worse. From the early morning, Elena, Stefan and Damon were at the library with Elijah going over the plan. What kind of, Bonnie had no idea. She was once again being babysitted by Jenna, who didn't mind it because she didn't have any wish to get involved with the vampire stuff. But, Bonnie, on the other hand, wanted to know and wanted to help.

Even though Elena gave her a speech yesterday that should have pursued her that she wasn't going anywhere near this, Bonnie was too stubborn to give up.

But, the person that this whole thing bugged even more than herself was Damon. He kept going in and out of the room, yelling and being rude to everyone. And of course, drinking nonstop. In three days, Bonnie has known him, she got use to him with a glass in his hand.

Right now, he was outside angrily nursing a drink and Stefan had followed him there.

She managed to sneak in the library while Elena was getting some coffee in the kitchen and chatting with her aunt Jenna.

She carefully steps inside, to explore a little and maybe lent some book from the wide library of the Salvatore mansion. What really picked her interest, is the fact that there seemed not to exist a book they didn't possess.

She picks one from the bookshelf and opens her to inspect if she would be satisfied with it. That's when she notices a box sitting on the table next to the couch.

She looks if anyone is near the room, and takes a few steps closer, holding the book tightly pressed to her body. She observes the object curiously. It's a small wooden chest with some artificial symbols.

She opens the box and sees a pretty glass container with a clear liquid inside. Furrowing her brows, she puts the book she's holding on the table and picks up the strange little bottle. The moment she does she sees flashes in front of her eyes and gasps at the feeling.

She puts it down quickly, not wanting to risk breaking it, and that's when she hears someone entering the room.

„Is there something I can do for you, Miss Bennett?"

It is the man that came yesterday, Elijah. The strange, composing man with handsome features of his face and a thick British accent that make him seem even colder that he looks like.

She doesn't speak, as he walks closer to her, closing the box where the elixir is and taking it in his hand. She just looks at him closely, as he observes her, too. His look is stoic and hard, it makes Bonnie cringe, feeling strangely nervous and on alert.

„What is that?" she asks when he turns around to leave the room. He stops for a moment with the box under his arm and turns in a swift motion to face her again.

„Forgive me, but, it is none of your concerns." He answers almost politely. He once again makes a move to leave the room, but her words stop him.

„It won't work." She says all of the sudden confidently.

He diverts his eyes to hers. They both glare at each other determinedly.

Strangely enough, she can't explain what makes her doubt this man and the potion he's holding. She just feels familiarity with it and knows that it's wrong.

Like it's a secret written all over it and only she can read it. She feels confident about it and that makes her continue her claim.

„Whatever it is...whatever it's supposed to do...it won't work."

„You seem to have a strong opinion on something you know nothing about." He answers her.

She crosses her arms and takes a few brave steps towards him.

„And you seemed to have too much faith in something that was made by a kind you know nothing about."

He smiles deviously, throwing her off balance for a moment. She blinks a few times nervously, as he takes one small step closer to her.

Stefan and Damon come into the room looking at them suspiciously. Of course, they've heard every word they exchanged.

„I know a lot more than you think." Elijah says cryptically. „Probably even more than you."

He smirks knowingly and turns to nod at the brothers standing at the doorway and leaves the room.

* * *

After she expresses her disbelief in Elijah, Bonnie is once again sent to her room to be with Jenna. Lucky for her, that doesn't last for long. A guy, by his appearance Jenna's current boyfriend Alaric, but what everybody believe isn't exactly him, appears at the house.

They all get distracted by his story, so Bonnie listens to their conversation, but it's cut short when she notices Damon is about to make his move out of the room. She quickly runs upstairs and closes herself in her bedroom.

She waits by the door, listening carefully the sounds outside, so when she thinks the coast is clear, she slowly and quietly opens the door and exits the room. She tippytoes her way through the upstairs hallway but doesn't manage to get any further then the second room when she hears voices. She doesn't need to check it twice to know, that the sound of conversation is coming from Damon's room.

„It's my life, Damon." Bonnie hears Elena's voice talking quietly. She steps closer, and holding her hands and back tightly on the wall behind her, she takes a peek at the room inside.

She sees them standing close to each other, Damon holding his hand in the air between them, and Elena having both her palms wrapped around his hand, rubbing it affectionately.

„My choice."

Bonnie diverts her look from the room, leaning on the wall and takes careful moves back to her room. As much as she wanted to eavesdrop these past few days, this scene was too intimate for her to see. She had a feeling she steeped in a very private moment between the two of them.

It could not be denied there was something between them, even though it seems highly inappropriate. Elena is Stefan's girlfriend and Stefan is a genuinely good and kind person. More importantly, he loves Elena. And she loves him back.

But, she's also quite affectionate to her boyfriend's brother, who seems to carry a torch for his brother's girl as well. It's very incestuous and Bonnie doesn't understand why is Stefan willing to put up with it.

As much as he would want to play the oblivious boyfriend, Bonnie knows he is very aware of the connection Elena shares with Damon. Everybody seem to notice it, but nobody says anything more than throwing in a bitter and quick comment on it.

She has seen it from Jenna, she heard it from Elena herself, and even spotted Stefan turning his head and swallowing hard on the outpouring affection his girlfriend has with his own brother.

She closes the door of her room, and makes her way over to the bed, but that's when she hears the screaming and the yelling. She walks the distance to the door and puts her ear to it to listen if she heard it right. That's when she hears the breaking and growling and Elena's screaming.

She runs into the room, and when she gets there, she sees Elena in panic running towards Stefan, who has by his back turned on her, and Damon who's kneeling and holding a large wooden stick that he just ran through his brother.

She gasps at the scene, her hand flying to her mouth in shock. Elena pushes Damon away and yells at him to get out of the room while holding onto Stefan who's in pain. Alaric and Jenna come running to the room, both stunned and taken aback from the scene.

Damon makes his way out of there, and that's when Bonnie notices Elena has blood smeared around her mouth. When Jenna leaves the room to go get Stefan blood bags, Bonnie turns around too, leaving Elena, Stefan and Alaric in the room.

She turns abruptly in the opposite direction that Jenna took to the basement and finds Damon at the library, with Elijah who's apparently giving him a lesson.

„The problem, Damon, you talk a big game, but you don't actually know anything. She will never forgive you. And never, for a vampire is a very long time."

The man in the suit turns around, a little surprised to see her standing there. But he recovers quickly, smirking at the girl and passing by her to leave the library with the famous container under his hand.

She observes Damon who is standing on the other end of the room, nursing another drink with his head held down. She shuffles on her place, making Damon look over his shoulder at her.

„What do _you_ want?" he hisses at her.

Bonnie frowns, angry at his tone and determinedly walks over to him in hard, rough steps. She stops in front of him when he turns to face her completely.

„Get back in your room, _witch_!" he practically spits the words out, but just as he pronounces the last syllable, she raises her hand and slaps him hard in his face. The intensity and surprise of the hit make him turn his face to the side with the direction of the punch.

He shifts his tongue in his mouth dragging it on the inside of his the cheek and slowly turns his face back to her. There's anger in his eyes and a predatory expression that should make her shiver with fear.

Instead, she looks at him coldly and almost disappointed.

„You hurt Stefan. And you hurt Elena." She tells him in a mad tone, dragging her eyes all over the features of his face. Then she turns around and exits the room in a hurry, leaving an irritated and baffled Damon behind.

* * *

When you get sucked in a supernatural universe like this one, there are probably certain rules to be followed. _Never punch an angry homicidal vampire_ would probably take the top of the list.

What exactly made Bonnie so mad, she could not say. She couldn't pick and point at just one thing and say 'That's it!'. It wasn't so much over the fact that Damon hurt Stefan or Elena because to be honest she doesn't know what exactly provoked him.

But, for sure she knew there were, at least, two minimum reasons why she did it. First one was that it seemed the most natural thing in the world. Something inside her just irked her to slap Damon. There was no messing around, she just wanted him to know that she doesn't approve him and she doesn't allow him to do shity things to other people just because he feels bad.

And he wasn't hiding the fact he was having an awful day. He was cranky and bitter, so he decided to get that anger out on other people. She wasn't gonna stand that. He nedded to know she's not gonna stand that.

The other reason is that he was simply too upset. His head was too hot and running on adrenalin from the whole mess. He needed his head in the game, so to speak, and that's exatcly what she hope she did for him. Knock his head a little to get a little prespective.

As she's too busy rethinking about how she's gonna regret that punch on the vampire, everybody around her seemed to have the same idea of bailing the house, to cool off a little.

Stefan painfully explains to her he needs to get Elena out of the house for a couple of hours and tells her just how wrong Damon's decision was. Apparently, he fed Elena vampire blood and if she dies in the next 24-48 hours, she will become a vampire, too.

When they leave, Jenna and Alaric get all googly eye around each other and in all their frisky mood, they ask her if she's gonna be fine alone for a couple of hours. She thinks they don't even hear her answer, as they are already moving out of the house.

When she's sure everybody are out of the house, she uses the opportunity to explore the wide library of the Salvatore house and find some answers to her questions. The library doesn't help much, so she decides to break a little privacy and look at Stefan's room.

Just as she opens the first book, a voice coming from the hallway startles her.

„Ric!" Damon yells loudly „Ric, you in here?" he appears at the doorway of Stefan's room to see Bonnie holding his brother's dairy in her hands.

„What?" he looks at her confusingly. „What are you doing here?" he steps closer to her, and she closes the diary and puts it behind her back.

„Nothing." She says.

He eyes her suspiciously, imagining how dull she thinks he is. Like he didn't see what she was doing. He thinks of the ways to mock her on her clumsy and see-through act for a moment but decides to dismiss it.

„Where's everybody?"

„Out."

He frowns in confusion.

„They left you alone?" he doesn't wait for an answer. Instead, he fishes his cellphone from his pocket. „Where's Ric?" he asks her not looking at her, typing on his phone.

„Ric?" she asks confusingly, not remembering the name.

„Yeah, Jenna's boyfriend." He says, looking at her. She looks lost, so he pronounces the name slowly. „Alaric?"

„Oh, Alaric!" she says remembering now who he's talking about.

„Yeah, Ric, that's what I said." He tells her annoyed.

„He's out with Jenna. They went somewhere...I don't know where."

Damon frowns and puts his phone on his ear. He turns around and waits for the guy to pick up, but it goes straight to the voicemail.

„Damn' it Ric!" he screams at the cell phone. „Call me when you get this! I need to get in your apartment, now!" he ends the call and shoves angrily his phone in his pocket. He looks around and thinks what to do. He runs his hand frustratingly through his hair and curses again.

„Something wrong?" Bonnie asks him from behind his back.

He turns around and looks at the girl. „Nothing." He says.

They don't speak, just look at each other. Damon observes the girl remembering the slap from this morning. It pissed him off, but he couldn't help but feel a little satisfied because it is so _Jugdy_ of her.

The girl seems to have an impatient expression on her face, so she blows out a frustrated breath and tosses the leather journal back on the desk. She has _'business'_ on her face, and he smirks expecting her words.

„Okay, you know what? I'm done." she starts and takes confident steps closer to him. „I'm done being the ignorant little girl nobody wants to tell anything! I'm done being pushed to the side because nobody has the balls to speak to me!"

She stops in front of Damon, leaning into his personal space, looking up at him, and talking loudly even though he's right in front of her.

 _Using his own tricks against him._

„I am a goddamn witch, and as it seems to me, those kind are not that easy to find around, so I demand some answers from you!" she leans in closer and he raises his eyebrows.

She waits for him to speak, as she breaths heavily feeling angry at him for his cold posture. He silently watches her, refusing to talk. She sighs in disappointment and shaking her head steps back from him, aiming to leave the room.

The second she takes a step to leave he grabs her elbow.

„What are you doing?" he asks her looking down on her.

„What do you think?" she spits at him. „I'm leaving."

She shoves him off of herself and turns to leave. She's not even halfway through the hallway, when he flashes in front of her, catching her by surprise and making her bump into him.

„Get out of my way!" she screams at him. He just coldly stands in front of her, and when she tries to pass him, he grabs her shoulders to keep her from leaving. She tries to brush him off, but he is too strong for her.

„Move or I will-...!"

„Why do you want to know?" he cuts her off, surprising her with his question.

„What?" she looks at him strangely.

He lets go of her and sighs heavily. He looks determinedly in her eyes.

„Why do you want it?" he asks her. „Why do you want to know anything when it can get you killed?"

She closes her mouth, not knowing what to say, how exactly to answer this. Why would it worry him at all?

„What do you care?" she asks him.

„Elena wants you out of this." He tells her as a reason.

„I don't care what she wants." She tells him angrily. „She doesn't rule me. She doesn't tell me what to do. If I want to do something I'll do it, I'm not gonna ask her permission about it."

„It's about her." he says seriously. „She calls the shots, she makes decisions, and we need to follow."

„Like you followed it this morning when you feed her your blood?"

She shocks him for a moment, as he looks to the floor and takes another deep breath.

„Let me guess. She hates me." He says bitterly.

„You don't follow her rules, so why should I?" she ignores his comment.

He raises his eyes to her, frowning expression on his face.

„If you're so sick of her demanding, why would you want to help her?"

„Because nobody deserves to die out of someone other's hands, no matter how dumb, selfish or evil he is." She answers as a matter of fact. „Besides, it's not just her that gets hurt. There are more people involved in this."

„How do you know that?"

She tosses him a look that says _how do you think_.

„You know, your eavesdropping is really starting to annoy me." He rolls his eyes.

„Stop bickering and start talking." She tells him grabbing his arm, as he stuffs his hands in his jean pockets. He looks a little surprised on her move, and even more when she steps closer to him holding her look strongly on him.

„You know what to do, and hell if you think I'm gonna let you do it without me."

He looks down at her, his eyes observing her determent attitude written all over her face. He sees her exasperation and how tired she is of the situation. She's taking matters into her own hands, and all he can do is except to be her accomplice and maybe have a chance of fixing all of this or turn her down and let them both drown in it.

His eyes divert from her face as he speaks.

„There is something I can do and it doesn't involve anybody else getting hurt."

„I can help."

„Except me." He tells her seriously, his eyes back on hers. „I do this, I could easily get killed. I get you involved, you could end up dead, too. Elena would never forgive me that."

She shrugs her shoulders, a smirk appearing on her face. „Well, luckily you'll be too dead to care, right?"

* * *

Sometimes things work out in the strangest of the ways. Especially in Mystic Falls. When he remembers the reason why he came back here, it actually makes him cringe.

Katherine. Getting Katherine out of the tomb. Then, having his heart crushed in million pieces upon learning her betrayal.

But then he got his attention fixated on Elena, the girl that was Katherine by her looks entirely, but was completely opposite of the said vampire bitch.

Even though Elena didn't do anything that could make him think he could actually have her one day, he refused to give up. He would do everything for that girl, even die for her. And he was pretty sure he was riding to death itself, at this very moment.

The only problem was getting Bonnie Bennett involved in it. But, there she was sitting on the passenger seat of his blue Camaro, listening carefully while he told her everything she needed to know.

 _Who exactly is Klaus?_

 _What did he do?_

 _What is the sacrifice about?_

 _Who is Katherine?_

 _What is the plan?_

He told her everything. And the more he told her, the more questions she had. He knew it was a colossal mistake to bring her in this, but what's done is done.

Elena had vampire blood in her system, and with the sacrifice playing out today, she would become a living dead girl and she would hate him forever. And Elijah was right about one thing. Forever for a vampire is a very long time.

If he actually managed to save Elena today, she would be grateful to him, and maybe, she would even forgive him for involving Bonnie in this. So, the way he saw it, he really had no other choice.

So, there they were, driving in his car, heading downtown to Ric's apartment, where currently was residing Klaus himself. They fell into a silent drive, after the heated conversation and all the explanations he provided her.

He was focused on his driving and she was intensively watching the small little bottle with a golden liquid inside. She was holding it in her hand at the level with her eyes, twisting it and turning it like the secret is gonna fall out of it.

This was their solution. A bottle with a vervain extract liquid. As Damon informed her, vervain is some kind of enemy to vampires. It prohibits them from 'compelling' a person and weakens them from their strength.

She didn't quite understand how is it suppose to help them, considering that the plan was to save the werewolf and the vampire from Klaus, that he was planning to use in the sacrifice. But, Damon assured her, this was the best way. So, she just let him be.

At least, he was the only one who was excepting her help while everybody else was treating her like a little kid. She knew it was probably crazy, to get involved in a suicide mission with Damon, of all people, but she couldn't help it.

The last few days were getting too frustrating, and Elena and Stefan constantly forbidding her things along with their brooding worried faces was getting tiring.

And maybe it was just how the human mind works. When somebody spends too much time telling you how wrong something is and dangerous for you, you can't help but feel the appeal about it. The story of the forbidden fruit.

* * *

They get to the apartment and knock first. Nobody answers. He breaks the lock, and pushes the door open, to see Katherine standing in the apartment.

„Thank God." She says.

Damon stands leaned at the door and Bonnie appears and steps inside of the apartment. Katherine looks at her with wide eyes.

„You were right. She does look exactly like Elena." Bonnie comments.

„Bonnie? I thought you were dead." Katherine says flatly, even though she's surprised.

Bonnie takes a step further inside of the room and explores more.

„What are you doing here?" the vampire doubleganger directs her question to Damon.

He reaches into his pocket and shows her a small bottle.

„Is that...?" she asks.

„Vervain? Your salvation." Damon tells her.

„Give it to me."

„First thing's first. I need to know where Klaus is keeping his werewolf."

He's talking to Katherine and trying to get information from her, while Bonnie walks through the room, and looks at the items and furniture around.

She comes across a big heavy book that has marked pages inside. She opens them and looks at them. It seems like a witch book, it's full of spells, casts, and weird drawings.

She flips the pages and finds the spell of breaking the curse. Her brows furrow as she concentrates on the reading.

Damon throws the vervain to Katherine, and thanks her.

„Bonnie come on." He motions to her, already turning his back.

„Wait a second." She tells him not turning around and keeping her eyes on the book.

He looks at her and when she doesn't move from her spot he loses his patience. „Bennett!" he says urgently. „We're going." He tells her lowly.

„Yeah, yeah" she ignores him and keeps her eyes on the book. „I just have to-"

„Witch! You are driving me crazy! Let's go!" he yells leaning his hands on the doorway.

She turns around and shows him the book, holding it in one hand.

„Damon! It says something about the sacrifice! It could help us!"

He rolls his eyes and nods his head to her.

„Fine. Take it with you. You'll read it in the car."

She takes the book, a small smile appearing on her lips and heads for the exit.

„No!" Katherine stops her from heading out and pins her to the wall. Bonnie winces in the pain. „No way! You're not leaving out of here with that!"

„Katherine, let her go!" Damon yells, looking wide eyes at the scene playing in front of him.

„If that book gets out of here, Klaus will know you were here!" she says and tightens the grip on Bonnie's neck. „And guess who's gonna get their punishment first!"

„Aghh! Let me go!" Bonnie hisses in pain.

Katherine holds her on the wall and smiles evilly.

„You know... I haven't had anything real to eat in days..." she talks slowly dragging her nose along the witches neck, breathing in her scent. „And I'm just itching to make a meal out of you." Veins appear under her red eyes and her canines got larger ready to sink in.

„Katherine! Hey!" Damon yells and she turns around to look at him, still holding a struggling Bonnie on the wall. „You take one bite out of her, and you won't live long enough for Klaus to get his vengeance!"

Bonnie tries to get out of her grip and sees a candle holder on the small table beside her. She tries to reach for it, but it is just too far for her to grab it.

„Yeah? And how do you plan on doing anything?" Kathrine yells at Damon. „You're not invited in!" she turns to Bonnie again and growls, ready to take a bite out of her.

„NO!" Bonnie screams in fear.

The second Katherine's teeth scrape the witch's neck, she feels a piercing pain in her head, and out of intensity, drops Bonnie down, clutching her head and screaming in pain.

Bonnie looks at her in surprise with wide eyes and open mouth.

„Bonnie!" Damon calls for her. She sobers up and remembers she has to get out of there.

She reaches for the book that fell on the floor when Kathrine grabbed her. She takes the book and having her eyes on Katherine she walks to the door, but stumbles across a chair and the book goes flying out of her hand and drops on the floor.

Katherine stands up, her head void of pain now, looks at the witch ready to tear her apart. Damon's eyes catch Katherine's intentions and on instinct he tries to get in, to reach to Bonnie, but the invisible shield bounces him back.

Bonnie kneels down and picks the book up when she sees Katherine coming right at her.

„Bonnie! Get out of there! Now!" Damon screams for her.

Katherine is about to charge at her again, but Bonnie grabs the chair and pushes it to her, to use the opportunity to run out of there.

Kathrine falls over the chair, as Bonnie manages to run out of the apartment and out her reach.

She runs straight into Damon's arms, and he looks surprised to her reaction. She holds tightly onto him, her arms wrapped around his neck, with the book in one of her hands. She breathes heavily and leans on his body, practically shaking from shock.

Damon frowns, listening to her hard exhales and feeling her hot breath on his neck. His one arm wraps instinctively around her waist, holding her in place, giving her a small amount of comfort.

He is stunned over how light she feels and her scent strikes him. She smells like cinnamon and oranges. It's such a spicy smell but it fits her perfectly.

„Bonnie." He calls her, and she slowly separates herself from him, looking straight into his eyes, her breaths calming down. He hates to admit, but for a moment he feels the loss of her body around his, and one of his hand reach for her arm, holding her lightly in comfort.

„You okay?" he sobers up and asks her.

She nods her head, her eyes looking through him.

Katherine gets up from the floor and rushes to the door. Her compulsion doesn't allow her to leave the apartment. Her eyes widened and she looks in Damon, practically begging him.

„No... No..." she shakes her head. „Damon, please. You can't take that. Klaus will kill me. He will kill me." She talks hysterically.

„Sorry, Katherine." But he doesn't look sorry at all. „You haven't been invited out."

He motions Bonnie out of the hallway, and he turns his back on Katherine, as they both leave the floor.

„Damon... Damon! He'll hunt you down too! He'll kill you! You hear me?! He'll kill you all!" Kathrine's screams follow them on their way out.

They get downstairs and Damon walks straight to his car that's parked on the side of the road. He's about to enter his car, when he notices Bonnie standing straight on the sidewalk, clutching the book to her chest, looking at the floor with her eyes wide open.

„Com' on, Bonnie! We gotta go!" he calls her, but she doesn't move.

„Bonnie!" he calls her annoyingly once again, but she doesn't even flinch.

He walks over to her, to stand right in front of her, urging her to snap out of it.

„Hey!" he calls for her and she lifts her eyes that are full of tears, her skin flushed. „What's wrong with you?"

She licks her lips and blinks a couple of times before answering.

„I...I almost died." She says, fear evident in her eyes.

„Don't be so dramatic." He dismisses her. „I attacked you before. You never looked that scared."

She watches him closely as he tries to reason with her.

„You never wanted me dead. She did." She says rubbing her hand over her neck. „I felt that. I felt her anger and rage...and desperation." Her voice shakes as she talks „She wanted to kill me."

He looks at her, not knowing what to say. His eyes observe her closely, as he licks his lips in thinking.

He raises his hand, hesitantly puts it over her cheek and is surprised how warm her skin feels.

„Hey. You're okay. And you're alive." He talks softly to her.

She nods her head, as a tear involuntarily comes down her cheek and he catches it with his thumb. He looks into her eyes and sees just how green and young they are. How young she is. She is just a girl, innocent and uncorrupt, withdrawn in a world of craziness and death.

He blinks a few times and realizes he is overstepping some unspoken boundary with all the touching. He pulls his hand of off her and takes a step back from her.

He never really spent that much time touching the witch and tonight there is just too much for him to bear.

„Let's go." He tells her when they both find their senses and turns his back on her, walking straight to the driver seat. She follows him and sits on the passenger seat, as they both drive away to their next location.

* * *

 ** _A few things:_**

 ** _There was suppose to be more to this, but it got too long so I divided it into two chapters. The next one is coming soon, I already wrote it, I just have to edit it._**

 ** _Second, I know it might be frustrating that Bonnie is trying so hard to help Elena, but I just want to remind you that this Bonnie doesn't have her memories, and she solely has what everybody else tells her. And it is in her nature that she wants to help because that's what she does. But,_** ** _she is gonna take a stand for herself in the future, for sure._**

 ** _I found a way for Bonnie not to get hurt in the process of dealing with Klaus for now, that you're gonna find out in the next chapter._**

 ** _And also, Bamon is slowly starting to rise from here on, so enjoy._**

 ** _Thank you for reading and sticking to it! Reviews are welcomed, as always!_**


	7. Chapter 7 - Breather

Chapter Seven - Breather

It seems familiar. The woods, the sky, the path they are taking, even the damp air around them, right up to the clearing where the tomb is. She can't shake the feeling there is something here, something she knows. And it has nothing to do with the memories of her childhood. Something dark is in the woods. Something that makes her shiver from coldness.

Damon walks in front of her in straight hushed steps, she follows him carefully in silence, looking to the ground as she tries to remember why she is having this weird deja vu episode.

The leading vampire is about to take the first stair leading to the ground between the ruins when he is stopped by a voice coming from behind them.

„Which one are you trying to save?" a guy with dark hair and dark eyes appears when they turn around. „The blond or the werewolf?"

Damon smirks at the guy, feeling irritated for being caught. Bonnie is watching him closely, trying to decipher what is this guy. Is he a vampire or a witch?

The answer becomes clear when Damon grabs his head, hissing in pain, falling down on his knees from the intensity of the pain. Bonnie's mind is racing, trying to remember something she could do to help him.

On their way over here she has spent the drive reading the grimoire, as Damon informed her it was called. She was very interested in the small tricks and easy spells that were explained in the writing.

But now, she can't get her mind in check to remember to use something against the warlock. She shakes her head in frustration and yells the first thing she thinks of.

„ _Notus!"_ she screams and directs her hand towards the warlock, but nothing happens. She frowns and watches her hand in confusion. She's pretty sure that's how it is supposed to be done.

„ _Notus!"_ she tries and again nothing happens. She gets angry at herself and yells for the man to stop, kneeling down next to Damon. She looks around herself, her eyes catching the sight of the ground. She reaches over and picks up a fist full of dirt, rising quickly to her feet and throwing it strongly at the man.

The man stops the aneurysm he's directing at Damon, as the dirt hits him in the face and he looks over to Bonnie. He smirks evilly at her.

„I think you meant: _Motus!_ "

Bonnie gets thrown on the ground a couple of steps further, but it gives Damon the chance to get up and kick him in the guts. The warlock once again traps him by an aneurysm, but it stops abruptly when something pierces the man's shoulder and sends him dropping down on the ground.

Damon is face to face with the last person he would have expected. The boy is holding a gun, and he is ready to aim at Damon any moment.

Bonnie raises herself from the ground, looking at the scene in front of her. Damon's standing with his arms raised up in surrender and the warlock is lying on the ground struggling with pain.

But, then she looks over to the guy who's standing on the other side, and her eyes almost pop out of their sockets. She walks in hurried steps to go stand next to Damon, who's trying to get out of it with his mouth.

„Look, I'm here to save them. Okay. I'm the good guy here." He talks carefully.

But it only makes the boy even angrier and he straitens the rifle and grips it harder ready to shoot. Bonnie jumps in front of Damon, yelling at the boy.

„No! Matt! NO! Stop!" she breaths heavily and watches the boy tense a little. Damon stands behind her and watches very closely the exchange.

„Bonnie get out of my way!" the human boy screams.

It makes Bonnie smile for a moment, but she dismisses it immediately.

„No. Put the gun down." She tells him firmly.

„You're with them?" the boy asks disbelievably „You're with them on this?! Bonnie, he's a killer!"

„Matt!" she yells. „This is me! I'm your friend! You can trust me! Now put the gun down."

He relaxes a little but doesn't move the aim from them.

„I said: Put it down." She says strongly. There are tears in her eyes, and her face is in shock. „Please." Her voice trembles a little, and Matt drops the aim from them, letting her release a breath she was holding.

She turns her head to Damon who's looking her strangely. She exhales heavily and drags her eyes back to the boy, who's standing there, with the rifle still in his hand.

When he raises his look to her, she can see the tears forming in his eyes, as well as the fear, disbelief and confusion that run through him. Her face softens and she bites her lip as she takes careful steps towards him.

„Matt..." she calls for him softly, the tears appearing in her eyes again. She stands closely to the boy, who watches her painfully.

She reaches carefully for the gun, putting one hand on his arm and the other taking the rifle away. She drops it on the ground silently and looks at the boy she knew almost her entire life.

„I don't know what's going on, Bon." He says defeatedly.

She launches at him, embracing him in a warm, firm hug with her arms around his neck, her head lean on his shoulder and her eyes close. He stands frozen for a moment, but after a deep breath and a sob he returns the hug.

He holds her strongly around her waist and sobs silently. He can't see the soft smile that's on Bonnie's lips and the calm expression she's holding.

Finally, someone she knew and remembered. When she saw him it was like a cold shower. First was shock and then relief. Matt was her best friend who grew up on the same street like her. He was the first real friend she ever made and he was tied to her childhood. The human childhood she remembered.

Damon crosses the way to them, taking the rifle from the ground and expecting the bullets. They're made out of wood, and that can mean only one thing. That's when he hears moving behind him and notices the warlock that came to his senses and is now standing behind him.

He looks carefully at Damon who's holding the rifle and in a matter of seconds he disappears in thin air. In the blink of an eye, he's gone. Damon looks around the woods, but he can't find anything. He doesn't see him, and he doesn't hear him, which means he's gone.

He looks over to Bonnie and Matt who're just oblivious to everything around them as Bonnie steps away from the hug, looking at the boy with a smile on her face.

Matt returns a sad smile, and raising his eyes to Damon, his face changes again. He's looking at him with pure hate and anger.

„Matt." Bonnie calls him. He looks at Bonnie again and relaxes. Bonnie turns around to Damon.

„We should hurry and get them out of here. That guy could be back any moment."

* * *

To say that she is having the weirdest day of her life would be an understatement. Besides, she has a feeling this was just a normal every day in this life. To be infiltrated in a world were vampires save werewolves and other vampires from a third kind of vampires... was perplex, to say the least.

So, now they're driving at Damon's car again, with Damon as the driver, rolling his eyes at almost everything Caroline says from the back seat while Bonnie's busy reading the book she took from Klaus's witch.

Caroline's going on and on about how worried she is about Tyler, and how she thought they were gonna die, and how awful it is that Matt was there, too.

Damon's only half listening to the blond vampire lost in his own mind. He kept replaying the exchange between Bonnie and Donovan boy. It was surprising that the witch remembered the plain human boy and didn't remember everybody else.

When he asked her about it, as they were waiting for Caroline and Matt to tie Tyler at the Lockwood cellar, because of his transition, she answered simply.

„He's my best friend from childhood. Of course, I remember him."

But, she still didn't remember anything else. He shakes his head to keep his mind back on track, they had other pressing needs for now.

„Did you managed to find anything in that book?" Damon directs Bonnie the question to at least shut up Caroline for a little.

„Yeah." Bonnie mumbles ignoring him completely, staring at the book with furrowed brows.

He rolls his eyes and sets them straight on the road ahead of them. They're driving Caroline home.

„So where is Elena?" Caroline asks Damon. „And Stefan?"

Damon sighs heavily, closing his eyes for a moment and gripping the steer wheel tighter.

„Klaus took Elena already. Stefan called me while we were taking Lockwood to the cell."

„Did you talked to them? I hope Elena's ok." She comments.

He flinches a little. The blond vampire doesn't know about him feeding Elena his blood and he really didn't want her to know. He actually didn't want anyone to know. It was an act he would rather not remember. He knew it was wrong and he was acting of simple anger.

„Oh my God." Bonnie interrupts.

Damon and Caroline look at her questioningly.

„Oh my God!" she says louder this time.

„What? What is it?" Damon asks her, looking at the road, then at her again.

„I found it!" she exclaims.

„Bonnie, what are you talking about?" Caroline asks her.

The girl just sits on her seat with a smile plastered on her face and eyes wide open as she continues to read.

„Hey! You're gonna tell us or what?" Damon says losing his nerves.

She looks at him and answers him. „It's about the curse. The sacrifice, that Klaus wants to do. I found a way around it, sort to speak."

Damon shifts his car to the side and parks it by the road. He turns the engine off and turns his look on Bonnie while Caroline leans from the back seat to get a better look.

„Okay. Talk. Now." He says shortly.

„Well, everything is said here, really." She says pointing at the book. „Look...it says, that the curse needs to be broken _on the night of the full moon when the moon is at his peek_."

Caroline and Damon look at her concentrated to what she's saying.

„The ingredients needed at the curse are:

 _'one executioner, the binder, one in which the link is going to be made in'_

She looks at the two vampires who both look at her with confusion written on their faces.

„That's Klaus. He's linking the vampire and werewolf in one, in his own body." She says. „Then _'one, that reaches his vigor at the particular phase of the moon'_ "

„Moon..."Caroline mumbles, while she thinks „A werewolf."

„Yes." Bonnie says with a smile on her face.

„ _'one deceased, which feasts of the essence of the living'_ "

„Vampire." Damon answers and Bonnie nods.

„and _'one, supernatural abnormality, of the choice from the servant of nature'_ , that could be a doubleganger, which means Elena."

„We know all that, Bonnie" Damon tells her annoyingly.

„Yeah, well just listen", she continues to read, „ _'The servant of nature has the ability to bind the ingredients, at the binder, where the ingredients, one by one, link together, making a specific kind and rising the one that possesses compositions of all.'_ "

She stops and looks over to Damon and Caroline, who have two question marks above their head. She looks at them as if they are supposed to understand what she just read.

„I still don't get it." Caroline comments.

Bonnie exhales. „Yeah, it seemed kind of messy to me too. But, then I read this, it talks specifically about the doubleganger, look" she turns the book to them to look at as she points at the section she reads „ _'the supernatural abnormality, consumed by the binder himself, needs to be purifying and the flowing essence has to be entirely of the living'_ ".

The two vampires look at her like she just grew two heads.

„Klaus has to drink the doublegangers blood."

„Again, something we already knew." Damon says losing his patience.

„Again, I am not done. If you would have listened to me, you would've known that."

„Okay, so you said you found a way around it, right?" Caroline asks.

„Yes." She answers. „Look, it says here, _the flowing essence of the living_." She looks questioningly both of them, waiting for them to connect the dots by themselves.

„Blood." Damon says after a couple of moment of silence.

„Yes!" Bonnie says. „So, it needs to be purifying and entirely of the living. And here, where the ingredients are listed, you have the word one." She stops for a moment letting them sink what she is telling them. „I didn't understand why is it so important, but I knew it was. The word one means that it is unique, something that's singular, or unmixed."

She hits Damon lightly on the shoulder, „And then I remembered the elixir Elijah was planning on giving to Elena in order to resurrect her from the dead, once she is used in the breaking of the curse. I saw the elixir and I knew it from the moment I took it in my hand something was wrong with it."

Damon still had no idea what she was babbling about.

„The elixir is made out of some herbs and kitchen ingredients, meaning it's a mixture. And it is supposed to have mystical properties to save a life from death.

For that kind of power, it needs to be very intense and boisterous. Which means, once ingested, it needs to completely get into the essence and change something at the core of it.

But, not only that. The elixir was made by witches. Elijah said he had the witches make the potion for Katherine, in order to resurrect her once the curse was broken.

That made no sense, at all. Why would any witch let Klaus break the curse if she knows that it would upset the balance of nature?

Sure, he has his minion witches, but if they understood the curse at all, and wanted for Klaus to break it, they would have never made the elixir, in the first place.

But, on Elijah's request, the potion was supposed to work on Katherine after she died, and that would mean that the sacrifice would have to happen anyway.

Ergo, the elixir exists, and it works in such a specific way that not even Klaus or Elijah would ever understand."

She finishes with a heavy exhale from her lungs. Damon's face is frowning and Caroline's eyebrows are in deep concentration while she waits for them to get it by themselves.

„Like a poison." Caroline says quietly. It works like a poison!" she exclaims certain of her words.

„Exactly!" Bonnie screams excitedly. „It poisons the blood of the doubleganger, which means, it is not the one, it is not purifying and it is not entirely of the living essence, and it prohibits Klaus from breaking the curse."

Damon furrows his brows harder and looks at Bonnie that is so exited to talk about this, he almost thinks she is gonna jump out of her skin.

„So, Elena just needs to drink the elixir, and she is actually saved?" Caroline asks.

„Not really. She can drink the elixir, but Klaus not knowing this, could go through with the curse, and kill her in the process. We don't know if the elixir actually has any resurrecting properties, we just know it just works as a ban for Klaus to break the curse."

„But, if he would have known this, he probably wouldn't go with the curse." Caroline reasons. Bonnie shrugs nodding her head, uncertain of the answer.

„And he already has Elena, who didn't drink the elixir. And I doubt that if we ask Klaus to let Elena drink it, he would let her. Which means...we are at square one. We got nothing." Damon says bitterly.

Bonnie looks smugly at Damon with a smile plastered on her face.

„And that just proves you don't listen to anyone." She talks amused shaking her head to him. He looks at her curiously.

„The blood of the doubleganger needs to be purifying and the essence of the living!" She pauses for him to understand. „Her blood can't have any mystical properties or it will screw up the breaking of the curse!"

His frown slowly changes into a smile as he looks at the smug expression she has on her face. They are both grinning at each other like two idiots, and at that moment, he feels the need to kiss her silly for what she has just discovered to him.

Of course, he ignores it and continues to smile. She's done it. She has actually done it. Not only did she found a way to stop the sacrifice, but she somehow managed to turn upside down his wrong doings from this morning. She made his bad choices seem like the only good thing in all of this mess.

„I don't understand." Caroline says defeatedly.

He blinks his eyes, completely forgetting the perky vampire on the backseat for a moment. Bonnie turns over her shoulder to the blond and starts explaining.

„Elena has to have a clean blood, nothing mystical or unliving or unpurifying can be in it." She looks over at Damon, her speech slowing and getting quieter a little. „You feeding her your blood this morning..." Caroline's eyes almost pop out of her head. „...poisoned her blood and made it useless for the sacrifice."

„You did what?!" Caroline screams at Damon. But he is ignoring her words and observes the witch at the passenger seat, that has a light smile and her eyes are glowing like two brilliant sapphires in the moonlight.

* * *

„I should have gone with him."

Bonnie says frustrated to Caroline, while they are sitting in Damon's car, that's parked in a dark alley while he is on the mission. The mission is to catch Klaus at Alaric's apartment before the sacrifice happens.

They did their math and by their calculations, the moon reaches his peak around 22:40, so 2 hours before it happens makes a good plan to catch Klaus at his residence.

„He can do it by himself." Caroline dismisses her. „I'm more worried about Elena."

„Elena's not upstairs with Klaus right now." She looks at Caroline over her shoulder.

The blond furrows her brows and looks strangely at her friend sitting on the front passenger seat.

„She is the one being sacrificed to him." She reminds her.

Bonnie shakes her head as she talks, not turning her head back to her friend.

„I'm just worried that Klaus is going to lose his temper once he hears he can't actually use Elena because she has vampire blood in her system. I may not remember the guy, but I hear he can be quite revengeful."

„Yeah..." Caroline says and her voice gets breathy irritated as she talks „And it is Damon's fault, so he brought it on himself."

„He sort of saved her life." The witch frowns. „And he is up there risking his own life, giving a very bad news on an immortal ruthless vampire."

There's a moment of an awkward silence in the car. The female vampire leans forward to her friend on the front seat, directing a look of disbelief on her.

„You don't actually think that, do you?" the angry tone of her voice makes Bonnie look over to the other girl. „He didn't save her life, Bonnie. He did a very wrong thing. Something Damon usually does. And it happens to be his lucky day, that you are conscious enough to get his ass out of the problem, where the actual wrong thing he did gets a silver lining, painting him a good guy who saves the day while you are the real saviour withdrawn in the shadow."

She can't even comprehend the things Caroline is saying because it is just too much.

„So saying that he saved her life is a very wrong thing, Bonnie. And it goes straight up there with him actually doing it."

„It may be wrong, but it still has a silver lining." The witch tries to reason.

Caroline's eyes widen on Bonnie's words, as she opens her mouth to speak, but no words come out. She shakes her head in anger, a weird noise coming out of her throat, almost as a growl, as she composes herself enough to talk again.

„Do yourself a favor and don't worry about Damon." She says coldly.

„Why not? He could be-"

„No." Caroline interrupts her, looking her straight in the eye. „Don't worry about him." She exhales heavily and leans herself backwards on the backseat, crossing her arms over her chest.

„Just don't." She finishes quietly and they don't say another word anymore.

There is bad blood between Damon and Caroline, but then again, it seems there is bad blood between Damon and everybody she came across until now. Perfectly normal for Caroline not liking the blue-eyed vampire, solely on the fact of what he did to Elena this morning, but there was more to this, she is sure of it.

She feels as there should be bad blood between herself alone and Damon, too. Judging the way he acts around her, it is very obvious they don't have a very close relationship, and there is something about him that just bugs her in a very weird way.

She feels obligated to answer rudely to his snarky comments, and maybe it's just the fact he is rude too, so it's her defense mechanism. Or it's just how her mechanism works around him, because, he is the one who always dares her for a good comeback comment.

Never the less, it seems so unimportant right now, what kind of level of relationship she has with him, or he and Caroline have when they are all in the same mess. But, dismissing it at this moment seems the best solution, so it's exactly what she does.

* * *

The level of animosity can't be described by words right now. It lingers in the air and the tension can be cut with a knife right now. And he doesn't know if it's the animosity coming out of himself alone or the other enchant vampire.

Bringing the news to the guy seemed so dumb, but it was the entirely honorable way to do it. He left Bonnie and Caroline downstairs at the car, parked one street further, and told them about the plan. He isn't back in 15 minutes, start the car and run.

So delivering the news, of how he stole his vampire and werewolf, wasn't bad enough because the guy had a backup. Of course, he did.

But, showing him the grimoire he stole from his witch, standing next to him right now, the same warlock that massaged his brain vessels with a number of aneurysms in front of the tomb earlier, made Klaus look almost amused. Deadly, but amused.

„So... you stole a book? And now...what exactly do you want? You want to return it, so you can get more points for your death?" Klaus asks him, his thick British accent laced with boredom.

„Well actually, I read this." Damon says looking at the grimoire in his hand. „And it seems very interesting, you know...the curse and everything... But then I remembered something, and you could say I'm just adding points on behalf of my death, but-"

„Just get straight to the record, mate!" Klaus yells angrily, cutting him off.

Damon smiles at him and takes a step forward. „Well, you know that little curse that's been bugging you for centuries now...it ain't gonna happen tonight."

„And I already told you I don't bloody care which vampire or werewolf I use. So, unless, you got something good to say, I suggest you use the advantage of me simply killing you, with no torture at all."

„Elena has vampire blood in her system."

Klaus starts laughing loudly.

„Oh... That's your big reason? If anything, you should be happy, that just means you're gonna have the eternity to chase after her with your brother. It doesn't interfere with my business with her."

„Oh, I think it does. And I think your witch here can confirm it to you, too."

Damon looks at the warlock, and Klaus turns to look at him, too.

„Maddox?" he calls him, as he notices that the expression on the male witch has is confirming Damon's words.

„Blood of the doubleganger needs to be purified and nontoxic." He answers with his wide eyes. He swallows hard looking at Klaus with fear in his eyes. „With vampire blood in it...it's useless."

From there on everything happens in a flash. Klaus beheads his witch on the spot and before the smell of the blood can hit his nose, Damon finds himself on his back, with Klaus's hand wrapped around his heart.

His eyes become too heavy and everything is blurry. He can feel his veins stop pumping the blood in his body. And in his ears, he can hear the loud thumping of his heart muscle. The same heart muscle that is in the other vampire's hand, squeezing it just enough and twisting it to the side. It's a nice technique, the one Damon used himself a fair number of kills in his exitance. A slightly twist on the side gives a very masochistic kick on your opponent, that he just prays for it to be over sooner so that the pain can stop.

It's a nice technique, the one Damon used himself a fair number of kills in his exitance. A slightly twist on the side gives a very masochistic kick on your opponent, that he just prays for it to be over sooner so that the pain can stop.

But it actually just prolongs the death, it gives you time to enjoy the kill. To look at your enemy, as he slowly begs for death to come. As a big time murder himself, Damon always enjoyed that part. It wasn't about when he begs for his life, but when he begs for his death. That's the moment that you thrive in, to know that you destroyed that little hope your rival has. That little small amount of hope, that exists right to the point of that twist. Where that hope twists in devastation and praying for the death to come as quickly as it can.

He closes his eyes and waits death to come. It seems very out of character for him, to just give up and wait for death, but he thinks that's the way to he can redeem his faults to Elena. Sweet Elena. The girl that he learned to love once again after Katherine screwed him over. He thinks it the honorable way so Elena can truly understand how big his love for her is.

The moment he thinks this is the last breath he will ever inspire, he feels the loss of the grip around his heart. The pain changes and he feels his opponent pulling his hand out of his chest.

His eyes are open again, but he doesn't seem to register anything around him. He can hear the screaming and pulling and punching in the background, but nothing seems to kick him to get his senses back.

He opens his eyes wider and in blur he sees a blonde head standing over to a falling Klaus.

„You!" he hears the Original speak, as another smaller figure appears next to the blond.

„You're supposed to be dead!"

 _„Tornare!"_

He hears sounds of cracking and a loud thump somewhere around him.

He feels the metallic scent of his own blood in his mouth, and his head falls down on the floor. He thinks he hears someone calling his name, but he can't be sure. Small hands grab his ripped shirt, shaking him strongly. They are warm and soft, and he craves for the spicy scent lingering in the air, but the pain wins him over and his eyelids fall heavily drawing him unconscious.

* * *

 ** _So, here was the 'second' part'! I do hope you liked it, even though I myself am not completely satisfied with it. But, I do hope next chapters are gonna make up for the better. I am just relieved that this part of the story is out, because from now on, I am really excited for what comes next._**

 ** _Reviews are welcomed, as always...good or bad! Give everything you got!_**

 ** _Thank you! ;)_**


	8. Chapter 8 - Little prince

Chapter Eight - Little prince

He hears soft rustling first. His face twitches of the distant sound. He drifts to sleep again, ignoring everything around him.

 _Thump!_

His eyelids rise tiredly. He inhales deeply and his hands reach to rub the half open eyes. He notices the surface under his body is soft and comfy. He looks down and sees that it's his satin sheets covering his lower half of the body. He's home. At his bed. In his room.

There's small lamp on the other end, brightening the room with a small amount of light. He feels tired. But it's not the tiredness of lack of sleep, it's the tiredness when your insides are practically screaming from ache and numbness. The kind of tiredness you feel when you overslept.

He turns to lie on the side and looks over to the clock. He frowns. _Sleep, Damon._ He should be sleeping. He closes his eyes and tries to drift off to sleep again.

 _Swiiish!_

 _Sshmmm._

 _Rumble._

He opens his eyes. He reads the clock again and it's not changed. Quarter past 1.

He turns to lay on his back again. His brows furrow together as he remembers what have happened tonight. It wasn't all clear to him. He remembers that Klaus has tried to kill him. The guy had a hand stuck in his chest ready to rip his heart out.

Obviously, he didn't do it. He remembers the blurriness and sounds of a panicking Klaus as well as the two figures that came to his rescue. But then it got dark.

Then he felt something wet all over his head and he remembers Caroline's face in front of his with a glass in her hand. He recalls the taste of blood getting in his mouth and Stefan's hands that were holding the blood bag, telling him to drink.

He remembers the living room of the boarding house and everybody else that were occupying it. Along with his little brother, there was the blonde vampire, Elena and the witch. He remembers opening his eyes widely and sitting up of the couch.

Elena with an uneasy expression on her face directed at Bonnie, who had a serious, maybe even mad face. Then it all got dark again.

The darkness was once again replaced with the inside of his room and a dim conversation between Stefan and Caroline. He thinks he could hear Bonnie, too, but he's not sure. He remembers the taste of the blood again and some more water pouring down his throat, and after that, it was darkness again.

 _Bump!_

The sound makes him sober up and stop remembering tonight's exciting and blurry events. He sighs and rubs his face with his hand as he gets up from the bed. When he stands on his feet, they feel limp so he grabs his thighs to ease the weird feeling in them.

He hears some shuffling and light steps of bare feet tapping against the floor. The sounds are not loud, they are muffled and he is pretty sure they are coming from downstairs. _Stupid vampire hearing._

When he feels safe straight on his feet, he grabs a plain black t-shirt, putting it on and making his way downstairs. He listens to the silence of the rest of the house and knows instantly this is one person disturbing his sleep.

He takes a left turn at the end of the stairs as he follows the sound of someone's breathing. The light coming through the open doors indicates that this person is at the library. He slowly walks over and looking inside of the room he stops at the doorway. Of all the things he expects, this is nowhere near his thoughts.

There she is. The gorgeous caramel beauty is stretching herself by the large bookshelf. She's standing on a chair, trying to make herself taller. She has one arm reaching for a book and her wavy, dark, messy hair is falling down her exposed shoulders.

Her short purple nightie is even shorter do to her stretching, and it shows off her perfectly muscled legs that seem to go on forever. The smooth skin of her toned thighs look absolutely ravishing, and the nightgown is barely covering a perfect, curvaceous, perky, little ass.

His eyes are almost falling out of his head and his jaw is probably gonna hit the floor any moment now. He doesn't make a sound or movement as he looks at her. She seems luminous, like a bright dream waking him up from a dark sleep.

He doesn't move his eyes from the witch as he hungrily memorizes the sight of her. He thinks how this could easily turn out to be just a dream. Ony of those naughty, wet dreams he loves so much.

He would enter the room and say something suggestive to her, with a double meaning, and she would accept his offer willingly handing herself to him, hungry for his touches and kisses.

He would make her moan his name repeatedly and she would leave scratching scars all over his body for the pleasure he's giving her. They would paint the world with the wide colors of lust, want, need and satisfaction. Like a rainbow, rising from their hot sweaty bodies that are united together as one.

He blinks a few times, licking his lips wet and ignoring the twitch in his pants. He steps further inside and decides to make himself visible to the girl in the room.

„What are you doing?" he asks, trying to play it cool and cold, but there's a note of husky in it.

Bonnie squeals and jumps in surprise, her hand goes flying on her chest, while the other is holding on one of the shelves, to keep herself steady. Once she regains her composition, she chuckles, shaking her head, probably mocking herself for being frighten like that.

„Sorry. I thought everybody were asleep." She says.

His eyes follow the line of her body, and he's once again staring at her legs. _How short is that nightie?_

He mentally smacks himself on the head, shaking it slightly, and pushes himself further in the room, passing by her not throwing her one more glance. He's fixed on the bourbon at the table.

He pours himself a glass and downs it whole in the speed of lightning. What the hell is he thinking? Why is his mind playing this kind of games with him? This is Bonnie Bennett, the annoying, self-righteous, judging witch who likes to fry his brain or set him on fire just because it's Tuesday.

„You can't sleep either?" his thoughts are interrupted by the same distraction.

He pours himself another glass and turns around to look at her. She's still standing on the chair, looking at him, only she now she's holding a book and twisting it in her hand. She's feeling the covers and lightly caressing them.

He watches her hand motions over the book and can't help but to imagine how would her hands caress him all over his body under the sheets.

„I just wanted a drink, that's all." He shrugs, getting a hold of himself and thinking how he needs a cold shower stat.

She nods softly and turns back to the bookshelves. She puts back the book on her place and once again tries to reach the one on the top shelf.

He relaxes and takes a swig of his drink, ironically sobering his mind a bit, as he observes the girl.

It was quite funny, actually. She's standing on a chair and she still can't reach the book she wants. This girl is miniature.

He sets down his glass and walks over to her. She yelps in surprise when he grabs her from behind holding her waist and setting her down on the floor.

„Hey! What are you-?" she stops when she notices he doesn't say a word to her, as he stands on the chair himself, looking over the shelf she was trying to reach. He sets his arm up and ready to aim he looks down at her and asks:

„Which one?"

She glares at him with her frowned eyes and slightly opened mouth, feeling small and embarrassed at her shortness and his height.

„Uhm..." she clears her throat and points on the book „That one over there."

He looks over where she's pointing. „This one? _Child of God_?"

„Yeah."

He takes the book and glances it a little. He blows over the book and wipes the dust off of it.

„Here you go." He says bending a little and handing her down the book.

She takes it in her hands and before he tries to get down from the chair...

„Wait!" she says a little louder. „Uhm.. while you're still here, could you hand me another one? Please?"

„Which one it'll be?" he asks looking over the books.

„The one on the higher shelf. The multicolored, green one."

He grabs the book and showing it to her he silently asks if it's the right one. She nods her head in yes.

He steps down from the chair and he holds the second book in his hand looking at the title.

„ _Euphoria_ by _Lily King_?" he asks throwing her a skeptic look. „Really?"

„I like the covers." She shrugs and takes the book from him „They're very pretty."

Her voice is almost childlike and innocent. He smiles at the brightness on her face.

„Didn't you ever heard of the saying: 'Never judge a book by its covers'?" he smirks at her and crosses his arms over his chest.

She raises her look to him and notices he's questioning her taste in books and mocking her choice.

„Didn't you heard the one: 'The suit makes the man'?" she fires back.

„I don't think they were thinking about books with that one."

Her smile appears on her face as his stretches wide. He likes her sassiness and ability to always fire back to him.

„Mind if I make a suggestion?"

„Not at all."

He nods his head once in satisfaction and turns around to walk over to another shelf. He looks around, his eyes going up, down, left, right, searching for the right one. He finally locates it and bends a little to pick it up swiftly. It's a bright yellow book, and it is rarely thin comparing to the ones she chose. He walks back over to her and hands it to her.

„This one is far better than the ones you picked up."

She looks at the book, taking it from him and then raises him a look.

„ _Little prince_?" A surprised smile appears on her lips, and she chuckles a little. „Damon, this is a children's book."

„It's actually very complex and full of metaphors. Some adults still don't get it." He reasons.

She smiles at his comment a little wider, observing the book closely.

„Plus, it's highly recommended for reading before sleep. _Child of God_ is too scary for you and the pretty covered one is extremely boring." He tells her honestly.

She shakes her head to him, not believing he is actually trying to sell this one to her.

„Okay." She says with a hearty laugh.

„Have you ever read it before?" he asks her putting his hand in the pockets of his sweatpants.

„I did. It was assigned at...seventh grade, I think?" she scrunches her face in thinking.

„You read it just once?" He asks her incredulously.

She simply nods at his question.

„Well, that's not right. This book is far too good to be read just once in a lifetime. You have to read it a couple of times through your life."

„I didn't think you liked that type of books." She says smiling.

„What type did you thought I was interested in?"

His voice sounds husky again, and even suggestively while she peers at his ocean blue eyes. It seems she can get lost in them forever, never finding a way out. She swallows hard to get her mind back on track.

„I just didn't take you as a guy who would read children's books. That's all."

„ _All grown-ups were once children...but only a few of them remember it."_

He looks extremely mysterious at this light. It's slightly dimmed at the library, and he is dressed all black, which is an everyday attire for him. His dark hair is messy but it looks so soft. But, his eyes... they are sparkling. The blue in them makes him look like a fallen angel from heaven, in spite of the rest being black.

She furrows her brows to his statement. She smiles at him again and notices his eyes are measuring her nightie. He has a strange look in his eyes, one that she haven't seen from him yet.

They are tracing her body line hungrily, making her feel hotness at the tip of her earlobes, fingers and toes.

It's unbelievably charming how this guy can be funny and endearing like a child and incredibly sexy that makes her legs buckle, so she feels all mushy on the inside.

She has a feeling she's seeing a side of him he has never shown to her before. His usually cold stare is now warm, soft and lusty, and she just wants to enjoy this feeling from him.

But, she feels self-conscious and thinks how wrong she is reading into him, so she makes her cue to leave.

She clears her throat and places the books against her chest, making him blink several times and diverting his eyes to the side. She takes a step back and watches him swallow hard.

„Thank you." She says to him softly and he looks at her in the eyes. He doesn't say anything as his look follow her while she turns to leave.

He almost feels disappointed about her absence from the room, when she stops at the doorway and turns to look at him over her shoulder.

„Goodnight, Damon." She says, a smile dancing on her lips and sparks going in her green eyes.

She stays like that frozen until he answers her.

„Goodnight, Bonnie."

She leaves the room and he feels the sleep on his eyes. He steps over to the lamp at the room and turns it off. With a content smile, he climbs his room to find sleep.

* * *

It's freaking weird seeing that guy at the house again. Both Stefan and Damon don't trust him, not even a little bit. Their foreheads are cringed and the eyes are narrowed and you can read it straight from their faces. He is not to be trusted.

Which to her, seems, completely understandable, because she doesn't trust him either. On the night of the sacrifice, he hasn't made one appearance. He just called Elena once she was brought safely home by Stefan to see if she okay, and told her he is going to take care of Klaus.

How Elena seems to trust him, is beyond her. Her apparently best friend is very naive and tends to trust just about anyone. Not that she blames her. It seems to be a very endearing side to her. She just believes that everybody deserves a chance because everybody makes mistakes.

Speaking of mistakes, her eyes drift to Damon who's looking a lot better than yesterday. After Klaus had almost killed him, she and Caroline brought him at the Salvatore house, where Stefan had just come with Elena, saving her from the failed attempt of the sacrifice.

The blue-eyed vampire was unconscious and unaware of the things that were taking place. Elena was furiously worried about him and mad at his involving Bonnie, after everything she has said to him.

The doubleganger just couldn't understand why he would disrespect her in such way and continue to hurt her regardless her words. That's when Bonnie got angry and stepped in saying it was her choice and that's the only reason Elena is standing still alive at that moment.

The display didn't get any further as Stefan stopped both girls from going on, saying they needed to take care of Damon at the time. They haven't spoke about it yet, as Elijah appeared this morning at the Salvatore doorstep with some things to discuss.

„So... he left town? Just like that?" Elena asks Elijah while they are all reunited at the library.

„That's how it seems, yes." The man answers.

Everybody fall silent.

„So...I am safe? Right?" the doe-eyed girl asks unsure.

„For the time being, yes. But, I'm afraid it is not that simple. Klaus may be gone right now, but he will come back again, I assure you. He missed his opportunity to break the curse, but he is not going to let that happen again."

Elena nods her head with fear in her eyes.

„So, what can we do?" Stefan asks.

„There is nothing you can do. The sacrifice is going to happen."

„Not if we have something to say about it." Damon says confidently, standing from the chair he's been sitting on. Everybody looks at him. „We just feed you vampire blood every full moon." He says casually looking at Elena.

„I know you did not just say that." Elena comments bitterly, glaring at him.

„I don't recommend it either. Klaus tried to end you, but you got lucky. Once. I wouldn't try it again." Elijah warns him.

„Oh, and you have a better plan? Like that elixir, you knew nothing about!" Damon answers him, stepping forward to the ancient vampire. „If we would have listened to you, she would be dead right now!"

„I wasn't informed of the properties of the elixir." Elijah takes his challenge and takes a step forward too. „If I would have known, I would have never recommended it."

„Who guarantees that?" Damon says stepping closer, getting in his face, as Elena pulls him by his elbow, and calls his name, but he doesn't even flinch.

„I told you about it." Bonnie speaks from the back of the room. All eyes fall on her while Elena looks sympathetically at her friend.

„Bonnie, please..." she tries to stop her.

„I beg your pardon?" Elijah says ignoring Elena, glaring at the witch on the other side of the room.

Bonnie steps further in the room, to get closer to everybody, crossing her arms over her chest and holding her head high while she speaks to the old Original vampire.

„I told you about the elixir. I had a bad feeling about it and you just dismissed it, as nothing."

„I wasn't aware that you had a good judgment. As far as I was informed, Ms. Bennett, you do not possess any memories of your personal life, let alone anything about witchcraft. I could not risk that."

„So, you decided to risk her life." She fires back at him, taking a step closer.

Elijah tilts his head and with his eyes glued to the Bennett witch he steps away from Damon to give a full attention to the girl.

„I know you have retrograde amnesia, so you do not know anything about me. But, I warn you, Ms. Bennett...I do not like to be tested." He says slowly, clearing a threat to her.

„What are you gonna do?" she asks almost mockingly.

He intends to get closer to her, but Damon steps in his way, holding a hand in front of the man's chest, making it clear the witch is off limits.

Bonnie glances at the two men, while Stefan and Elena both tense at the display going on.

Elijah simply nods, turning to face Elena again and ignoring the distrust and unpleasantness from the witch.

„You can still trust me, Elena. I will try to find a way to help you. But, I have to warn you. Klaus did leave town, but do not think the danger has passed. He will have eyes on you the whole time."

Elena nods understanding. A silence took over the room. Bonnie glances at Damon, who's standing in front of her, with his back turned on her. She looks at his posture and wonders if he is feeling better from yesterday.

She remembers the last night encounter at the library with the blue-eyed vampire. She pushes her thoughts away, reminding herself it is not the time to think about it.

„What happened to Kathrine?" Stefan asks after an awkward silence.

„Klaus still has her. I, however, have it certain she will be safe until the next sacrifice." Elijah says.

„So, Klaus plans to use her at the sacrifice?"

„It appears like that. But, he can always have somebody else taking her spot."

* * *

He stands in the living room of his house nursing a drink and listening to the sounds of the upstairs talking. The voices od two girls discussing family dinner tomorrow night are roaring his ears.

He feels petty for eavesdropping, just so he can hear the sound of her voice. And he feels strangely confused and indecisive of the fact that he's not sure which voice is he listening to. Which girl is he following, despite the rational thoughts, none of it is his business.

The soft caring voice of the girl who hasn't scowled him yet for his yesterday's mistakes, but he is just waiting for it cause he knows it's coming. The relief that overwhelms him to see her safe and sound and not dead or as a living dead, makes him think he is an awful brother.

And having that knowledge of the bad brotherhood and going against it, makes his stomach turn upside down, so he eases nausea with another drink that burns his throat.

Or is it the voice of the other girl that he keeps listening like he is trying to make himself believe she is still the girl he remembers. Or was it somebody else there standing at the library last night with him making small talk about books?

The mere thought of it makes him think he just dreamt of it because it wasn't so much of the books that represented the problem. It was her and her appearance. Her looks and her eyes discovering that whatever her thoughts were, they weren't so far different from his own.

The heat, the sexual appeal, the attraction... it all lingered in the room like they weren't themselves. Like he wasn't Damon Salvatore last night and she wasn't Bonnie Bennett.

Not that he thought it was somebody else. He knew he was himself, he just never imagine the person on the other side of the conversation would be the witch.

They hated each other. They don't make small talks, they don't act polite with each other, and they don't observe each other with lust in their eyes. That simply doesn't happen.

The roaring of a car parking at the driveway of his house makes him furrow his brows in thought. A pretty Elena comes into his focus, and he asks himself when did she come downstairs that he wasn't aware of.

She casts one quick glance at him and turns her head to the front door opening and revealing the bubbly blonde with ten different bags in her hands.

„Hey! I'm here!" Caroline says entering the boarding house and closing the door with her foot.

„Good. You got everything?" Elena asks her.

„I think I do, yeah." She says shuffling the bags with a big smile on her face. „I got foto albums, homemade videos, journals, and I even have a projector so we can watch the videos on a larger screen. We can put a big sheet on and have a homemade cinema experience."

„That's great, Care. Did you get the foto albums from Bonnie's house?"

„Yes. I stopped by casa the Bennett and got the family albums and some framed photos lying around the house." The female vampire lifts one specific bag in the air.

„Okay." Elena answers rubbing her hand together and pointing to the staircases on her left. „Well, why don't you go upstairs to set everything up and I'll bring us the snacks. I already got the sodas upstairs."

The blond nods enthusiastically and leaves. Elena turns to face him again and without a second thought, she goes straight to the kitchen. He sighs heavily and makes himself drag his feet over the floor entering the kitchen.

„So...you and Blondie? What was that about?" he asks Elena who's expecting the kitchen cabinets for bowls and snacks.

„We're having a sleepover. A complete girl's night." She answers not looking once his way.

„Hmmm." He nods. „And the foto albums and projections? What's that about?"

The girl takes a deep breath and stops her movements. She raises her eyes to him.

„Caroline and I thought it would be good if we could show Bonnie some of her family photos and memories of the three of us. Maybe it can help her remember something."

She gets back to getting the stuff ready.

„And whose bright idea was that?"

„Caroline suggested it. I said it was a great idea." Elena says almost carefully.

„Mhmm." He just mumbles, which makes Elena look at him with a warning.

„Damon. I don't want to hear your opinion on this."

„I'm not gonna say anything." He says shortly, staying quiet for exactly 10 seconds.

„But..." as soon as the word leave his mouth Elena rolls her eyes, but he continues after all.

„If you really want to trigger her memory back, no amount of photo albums and videos are gonna do the trick. Shove her a grimoire in her hands and let her float pencils in the air or light up candles without a match. She's a witch, she needs to do tricks and spells so she can dispell her amnesia away."

„You know, just when I think maybe there is some decency in you, maybe there is a small, minuscule part of you that actually cares about Bonnie, you prove me wrong."

„I do care! I want her to get her memories back, so we can set our plans straight."

Elena shakes her head in frustration, but he continues to talk.

„Why am I the only one around here who thinks about the future while everybody else are neglecting the fact we are just on a simple pause state with the Klaus fiasco?"

„Did it ever occur to you that maybe it's because you're wrong?" Elena cuts him off angrily. „Everything you do, everything you say! It all goes in the wrong direction! And I don't know how to make you understand-?" she stops abruptly not wanting to continue. She doesn't want to hurt him, but it's like he's asking for it.

„Nah...I get it." He says quietly and bitterly. "It's very simple. I'm wrong."

But Stefan is right. He doesn't say it. She doesn't confirm it. But somehow it lingers in the room.

„Look, Damon..." Elena starts. „I know. I understand you just want to help, but not this way. Okay?"

His eyes drift from the floor and her all the time she's speaking.

„What you did yesterday..."

 _Here we go._

„...wasn't right. I know you did it to make things right somehow, but it was so wrong... On more than one level."

She can't even thank him for practically saving her life. Sure, it was a messy way to do it and at the time he fed her his blood, he wasn't aware that it would actually save her life. But he just wanted one acknowledgment from her, just once.

„And, involving Bonnie, after everything..." her hand flys on her forehead in frustration. „I can't believe you would do that! How could you make her do something like that? I told you I don't want her getting any near this, but you just couldn't listen!"

He raises his look on her frowning. He opens his mouth like he's about to say something, but instead, he closes them abruptly. He takes a deep breath as if he is preparing himself for a big speech (which, actually he is).

„All right. Elena, I am sorry for feeding you my blood yesterday. That was wrong. I know that. But, Bonnie-... If you think even for a second that I made that girl do something she didn't want to, you are more dense and dumb I ever thought."

Elena's eyes widen.

„That girl upstairs is more stubborn than anybody I have ever met in my existence. She is not gonna do anything that she doesn't want to, and even though she has no memories of how I am 100% sure she would have set me on fire if I didn't let her do what she wanted yesterday!"

Her face is blank. It's one thing to get scolded by Damon Salvatore, but to hear him talk against Elena and defend Bonnie Bennett?

Any moment now, pigs are gonna start flying and axes are gonna be falling. Because this never happens. Damon is supposed to ask for her forgiveness and tell her how wrong he was and pleading her how could he make it up to her.

Not preaching her about what and how Bonnie was. She is her best friend. She knows how Bonnie is. He doesn't. He has no right.

„Why can't you simply admit that you did something wrong?" she asks exasperated.

He frowns. Of course, she has no words to answer him, so she attacks him. He feels tired of her perfect choices and his disastrous ones. That's how she always paints them. No matter what he does or says, it's never gonna be enough for her.

She is Elena Gilbert. The perfection. He's nowhere near her. And right now, he doesn't feel the need to try to be.

He shakes his head and turns around to leave the house. He's suddenly thirsty for a distraction.

* * *

„I got the snacks!" Elena says entering the room.

She marches over to the table where the sodas are. Bonnie is sitting legs crossed at the bed looking over some foto album, and Caroline is setting the projector on.

„Great! We are almost done with the videos. I just have some minor details to adjust." The blonde vampire says.

Bonnie?" Elena turns around to face her, holding snacks in each hand. „You want salty pretzels? Or Twinkies?"

„Salty pretzels."

The pretty brunette nods and takes some chocolate muffins, few bags of chips and gummy bears in her arms. She heads to the bed and throws all the snacks on it. She takes the box of done chocolate muffins and opens it, along with some bags of chips, to our them in a bowl. She hands over the bag of pretzels to Bonnie, who takes them and opens it by herself.

„So... I was thinking about tomorrow." Caroline says, sitting on the bed next to the girls while opening her laptop to set the final adjustments. „Maybe we could go shopping since Klaus is officially out of town for now... And have lunch at the Grill...and after we could go see a movie. That new romantic comedy with Ryan Gosling is playing!"

„Yeah.." Elena says nervously with her mouth full of chocolate muffin. „Tomorow's not good."

„Why not?" the blonde asks disappointed „If you haven't noticed, I am in a serious love crises here! Matt broke up with me because I'm a living dead being and I need some girl time, stat!"

„I'm sorry, Care. Just... Tomorow's no good. We're having dinner in my house." Elena says looking at Bonnie. „My aunt Jenna is preparing a family dinner and she is really excited to host it."

„Ooh!" the vampire exclaims. „Well, that's ok. What time is the dinner? Should I bring something?"

The brunette swallows hard and diverts her look to the floor fidgeting with her fingers.

„Well...you see...uhm...I..." she stutters on the words.

Caroline stops what she's doing and looks over to Elena who is lost in her words.

„I'm not invited?" she asks sadly.

Elena raises her to look to the blonde, silent for a moment, not sure how to say it. Bonnie looks at the two girls with wide eyes, while munching on the pretzels.

„Well, I just didn't think it's your thing. I didn't want you to be bored." Elena says.

„It isn't my thing?" Caroline asks surprisingly with hurt on her face. „People I like with food and drinks and gossiping and talking like normal people isn't my thing? That's like the definition of my thing!" she says angrily.

„Well, I just..." Elena starts.

„Just come over." Bonnie interrupts. „I'm sure Jenna won't mind. She is very nice."

„No!" Elena yells. Bonnie and Caroline wide their eyes on her. „It's just...that...She is having food ordered! From the new french place, that opened recently! And...it's very hard...to get it...because...they are swamped and...she already ordered. The food. And there's not enough."

She knows it's a bad excuse and both girls know she is making stuff up, by the way they look at her. There's an awkward silence in the room.

„Fine." Caroline says finally with her head held up high. She's faking her pride and they all know it. „I was planning on having dinner with my mom anyways." Her voice is proud and raised, but she is very hurt by this. „The video is ready. I just gotta prepare the background."

She says, getting up from the bed and setting the laptop on it. She walks over to the wall on the opposite from the bed and takes a sheet that is going to be used as the background.

„I'm gonna go to the bathroom just quick." Bonnie jumps off the bed and leaves the room.

Elena goes over to Caroline and hands her the tape and clips she is using to pin the sheet on the wall.

„I can do it myself." She says bitterly and snatches the clip out of Elena's hand. Elena puts her hands in her back jeans pockets and checks behind them to make sure there's nobody near..

„Caroline." She whispers, leaning closer to the girl. „I didn't tell you about the dinner tomorrow night..." she stops and her voice gets even quieter. „Because there is no family dinner."

The blonde stops what she's doing, turning around and looking the doubleganger in surprise.

„What do you mean?"

„I lied." Elena looks a little sheepish. „Aunt Jenna has a date with Alaric tomorrow night. She's not planning a family dinner."

„So...there's no dinner at all?" Caroline asks slowly confused. Elena smiles widely.

„Oh, there's a dinner. Just not a family one ."


	9. Chapter 9 - Tempted

**_Just a fair warning. This chapter contains a number of songs. Some mentioned, some not. So, I'll just write down here which are they._**

 ** _1\. Stevie Wonder - Signed, Sealed, Delivered; Caroline's kitchen dance_**

 _ **2\. Ain't to Proud to Beg - The Temptations; Bonnie and Caroline's kitchen dance**_

 ** _3\. I Wanna be Your Underwear - Bryan Adams; Bonnie's kitchen dance_**

 ** _4\. Spandau Ballet - True; the cheesy failed attempt of Elena's matchmaking skills_**

 ** _Hope you enjoy! Reviews are loved!_**

* * *

Chapter Nine - Tempted

The sleepover with the girls went better than she thought. After she got back at the room, it was like a switch went on. The girls were laughing and giggling, talking. The bad mood from before was over. And Bonnie did had a good time. They watched some old homemade videos, flipped the photo albums and even though it didn't strike any memories to her she really enjoyed the night.

They had a real proper girls night. And that made her think about the sleepovers she could remember. The ones that existed in her mind and that in this world had no sense.

The girls night and sleepovers with Dana, Ticky, Christie, Mila and the rest of her girlfriends from her reality. Apparently, the girls actually exist in here, just that this Bonnie is not that close to them, as she is in her universe.

In her world, they would all get to Christie's, because she had the biggest house and her parents were pretty neglecting. Her mom was a boozy and her father was never home, which for a teenage girl was heaven. Or at least, that's what Christie always said, but Bonnie thought there was more under the surface than she let on.

The sleepovers would normally start with the girls doing some hairstyles and facial masks. They would gossip about who wore what at school and which football player is this week's hottie. Usually, there were minimally five girls at the sleepover and if one of them would cancel, they would just postpone it.

Sleepovers at Christie's included rice cookies, low fat milkshakes, and low sugar consistent tea. Snacks and sodas were out of the picture because they were all cheerleaders and the role models of the school.

With Caroline and Elena, having a first sleepover (that she remembers) was very nice. They watched videos and flipped foto albums while reminiscing and telling Bonnie about their childhood memories.

Talking about boys and celebrities they have and had a crush on. Apparently, Bonnie had a huge crush on Height Legger, when she started middle school and Patrick Dempsey when _Grey's anatomy_ fever took over.

They stuffed their faces in all kinds of snacks and sodas full of sugar, not thinking about the calories they ingested. Caroline being a vampire had no worry of getting any pound on her perfectly shaped body.

And Elena did a lot of exercise and running with Stefan to stay in shape, plus she gave up the cheerleading, so it didn't worry the head captain.

It was a very different feeling with the two girls because it felt more private. She liked the idea of having close friends who known more about her than she did herself. Especially at this reality that seemed 'bat shit crazy'.

So, this morning when she opened her eyes she was satisfied with last night's sleepover.

„Good morning, sleepy head!" She hears a voice in the room. She notices her bed is empty, even though she remembers falling asleep with Elena and Caroline at each side of her.

She raises her head and looks over to the direction of the sound to see a blonde tall vampire standing and putting on her earrings.

She's dressed in a light blue v neck sweater with a white button-up shirt beneath it. She has a white skirt on and light brown boots. Her hair is flawlessly done in obedient gold locks and she has light makeup on.

Caroline Forbes has style. She is pretty, hot and she knows how to wear it. Her bubbly and slightly bossy personality suit her perfectly. If she isn't into boys, Bonnie would definitely be into Caroline.

„Good morning," Bonnie said with her groggy morning voice. She swallows a few times and clears her throat trying to get her voice to normal.

„What time is it?" she asks.

Caroline walks over to the bed and sits down next to her crossing her legs.

„It's 8:30."

Bonnie nods, but, in her head, she thinks what the hell is she doing up so early in the morning. They fell asleep after 3 o'clock last night. They should be sleeping like logs.

„You're already up?" Bonnie asks the blonde with furrowed brows.

„Of course! I've been up since 7:15." Caroline answers too enthusiastically.

„And Elena?" The witch asks looking around the room.

„She woke up like half an hour ago. Dressed quickly and left in a hurry. She had ton's of stuff to do before tonight's dinner at her house."

„Oh."

„Now, com' on, lazy head!" Caroline says raising from the bed. „You get yourself freshened up and come down to the kitchen to help me make some breakfast."

She walks backwards to the door, looking at Bonnie who was still sitting on the bed.

„You got five minutes and if you're not downstairs with me in due time, I'm coming back up!" she says pointing her finger in an ordering tone. „And I warn you...It won't be nice." She's out of the room in a blink of an eye.

Bonnie raises her brows and pushes herself up from the bed. She walks over to the bathroom, to get herself ready for breakfast. She brushes her teeth, washes her face with cold water, and runs her fingers through her messy hair.

She looks disappointedly at her reflection in the mirror, which is completely different from Carolines appearance. She looks like a train wreck, where the blonde looks like a model straight from the headcover of a magazine. Maybe she looks like a mess in the morning too. She just had more than an hour to get herself perfect.

Bonnie dismisses it with a wave of her hand and decides she's good enough for breakfast. She walks back to the room, opening her closet and looking all the clothes she has. Elena and Stefan brought most of it from her house for her.

She looks over the big amount of garments and with a shake of her head closes the closet door. She grabs a grey robe from a chair and puts it over her purple nightie, pushing her feet in comfy white slippers.

She's too lazy to get dressed, and if she did, she would be late downstairs. If there's one thing she knows, it was not to mess with Caroline and her orders. The girl is a sweetheart, but step on her wrong toes and you'd be paying it for a very long time.

She walks downstairs to the kitchen and finds her blonde friend next to the stereo going through the collection of CDs. There's coffee in the making and pancakes are on the stew.

„Hey!" Caroline greets her with a huge smile on her face and choosing one CD from the bunch, she inserts it in the stereo. She turns the volume up and music comes blasting from the speakers. The blonde smiles and moves her head in the rhythm of the music. The song playing is _Stevie Wonder - Signed, Sealed, Delivered_.

„Hey. How can I help?" Bonnie offers.

„You can slice the fruit and caramelize them in honey dip while I finish the pancakes," Caroline says, stepping over to the stew, and tossing the pancakes on a plate, to pour another one from the mix.

She has an apron over herself, not to soil her clothes and caught her hair with some clips to stop it from falling in her eyes.

Bonnie takes the mix of fruit from the fridge and tosses them on the kitchen counter. She takes a knife and a kitchen board, to start slicing the bananas, strawberries and rest of the fruit.

She looks over at Caroline who's moving and swaying her hips with the music. She smiles when she sees the blonde singing and mumbling along with the song.

She focuses on her task and once done with the slicing and washing of the fruit, she continues. She puts the fruit mix at the pan and pours some sugar on it, splashes them with lemon juice, a spoon of honey and cinnamon.

She inhales deeply, leaning over the pan and enjoying the tasty smell of heaven.

The song changes and Caroline squeals when she hears _Ain't to Proud to Beg by The Temptations_ blasting from the speakers. She runs over to the stereo and turns the volume up more. She looks at Bonnie with a devilish smile and starts moving closer to the girl in dance moves.

She's snapping her fingers and moving her hips, singing along. Bonnie's blushing and laughing.

„Com'on Bon!" Caroline screams over the music. „Shake that butty on!"

Bonnie shakes her head and laughs at the enthusiastic blonde.

She's too embarrassed to dance. She didn't even remembered if she could dance.

„Oh! Com' on!" Caroline yells over the music. „This is an ultimate dance number for kitchen and cooking! There's no way you're standing this one off!"

The blonde grabs Bonnie by the hands and moves her until the girl gives up and gives in. They sway, jump, dip low at the kitchen, using a spatula as a microphone and swinging dishcloth in the laugh and dance the kitchen while getting back to cook the rest of the breakfast.

The music's still playing while they eat and drink coffee sitting at the kitchen counter.

„So are you excited for tonight?" Caroline asks her, taking a bite of her pancakes.

Bonnie shrugs, while playing with the rest of her food on the plate „I guess. I think it's gonna be fun." She is surprised how the blonde is now okay with the fact she isn't invited to the family dinner at Elena's tonight.

„Oh, I believe it will," Caroline says cryptically, with a smile on her face, while blowing in her hot coffee filled mug.

Before Bonnie could ask her a little more about it, Stefan's walking in the kitchen and greeting them with a smile on his face.

„Morning, girls."

„Good morning, Stefan!" they say both at once.

He walks over to the coffee maker and pours himself a cup, to join them leaning on the counter.

„How did you sleep? Did you had fun last night?"

„Oh, we sure did!" Caroline says excitedly. „We watched photos, home videos, we talked, we ate... it was awesome!"

Stefan smiles and looks over at Bonnie searching for her confirmation.

„It really was." She says sincerely.

„I'm glad."

They talk for a little while more, well mostly Caroline does, when Stefan takes the last sip of his coffee and straightens up from the counter.

„Well, I gotta run. Elena needs me to help her with something."

„Oh, could you give me a ride at her house? I gotta pick up my car. I lend it to her this morning, hers didn't start." Caroline explains quickly.

„Sure. You ready to leave right away?"

„Yes, sir." She smiles. She stands up, picks up her leather jacket that matches her boots and hugs Bonnie tightly. „I am so glad we hang out. I really had fun."

„I did too." The witch smiles.

„Bye!"

„I'll see you later, Bonnie." Stefan waves to her on his way out, when Caroline leaves the room.

„See ya." She answers quietly when he steps out of the room.

She picks the plates and puts them in the sink, hearing that the song playing is overjumping. She walks over to the stereo and takes the CD out.

She looks over to the collection and a smile creeps on her lips.

There is nobody at the house. Elena left this morning, Stefan and Caroline just stepped out, and Stefan said Damon left last night but didn't hear him come back yet.

She bites her lower lip and takes a CD, pushing it in the stereo and forwarding the mix until she gets to a song she likes.

* * *

 _Well, last night was a total bust._

Damon thinks while he's putting his clothes on. He left after he heard the girls were having a sleepover. He knew they would be up late and squealing and giggling. So, he decided to go at the Grill and have his own fun. It was Friday night, so he expected to be bursting with young, hot women.

But it wasn't. It was boring as hell, a bunch of old people or family's eating out. He didn't even noticed when did Mystic Falls turn in a home for the elderly.

So, all he did was got drunk on bourbon and caught a hot middle-aged 'fake' blonde who was hammered. She was flirty and she was a sure catch, but he didn't like her. Her perfume was too intensive and mixed with cigarette smoke. Her makeup was way to heavy for her years. She was a woman in a middle age crisis, probably recently divorced after her husband exchanged her for a lady half her age.

So, he bought her a drink and complimented on her beauty (nothing to compliment, but still). He did that to boost her confidence and left her dry. Left himself dry, too, but hey, he had standards.

Most vampires don't have that. They would suck on a fat trucker full of beer that smelled like dirty socks and burping. Blood is blood, they would say. But, not him. He knew how to pick his meals. When he was hungry, he wasn't eating or drinking, he was dining.

He hated cigarets, that was one. It really killed the real essence of the blood and changed it's taste. Plus, he didn't like the smell of cigarets. It reminded him of his childhood. The smell of tobacco always reminded him of the mighty Giuseppe Salvatore. Least to say, it was not a good memory.

On the other hand, alcohol. Guess, it deepens of personal taste. He loves alcohol, and he likes to feel the taste in his victims. But, not too much. There had to be a limit. If there were too much booze, he'd hit the breaks.

He came back home around 4 o'clock in the morning. He didn't hear the girls, which meant they finished the party earlier, and his brother was snoring like a baby.

It was around 9 in the morning and he shouldn't be up already, but he just couldn't sleep. The music and the drumming downstairs was killing him.

When he heard the front door open and close, he found it safe to go downstairs.

He got out of his room and putting a shirt on, he went down the stairs and straight to the kitchen.

He was still half asleep, and before coffee in his system, he couldn't function. He thought everybody left the house, so it surprised him when he heard the music starting to loudly play in the kitchen.

He furrowed this brows and opened the door of the kitchen. He was wide awake all of the sudden.

Bonnie Bennett was standing with her back turned on him, gripping the counter with her little hands, swaying her hips left, right, up and down.

The rope she was wearing fell down from one of her shoulders and exposed the skin with a purple thin string still on.

She ran her hands over her messy hair and dipped her curvy hips low, getting them straight up and thrust her round ass back.

That move made his dick jump up, and his fingers twitched to grip that perky little butt and sunk his nails into it.

She untied her rope from the front and throw it open, pushing it strongly from her arms letting it fall down on the kitchen tiles.

She set her hands on her hips and not stopping to sway them she rose her left foot and kicked it playfully to the side.

Something so sexy he haven't seen in a very long time. The moves, the shoulders, the hips, the legs, even the feet. It made the whole room burst into flames. Figuratively. All he could do was stand there frozen and watch with his eyes glued to her seductive moves.

Bonnie continued her dancing not noticing anybody was in the room. After her little dance with Caroline around the kitchen, she felt really relaxed, so she decided to continue on it while nobody was at the house.

She ran her hands down her body, over her breasts, belly, hips, ass and legs. She squeezed her thighs and grabbed the hem of the nightie pulling it up slowly, just enough for Damon to see the color of her panties.

 _'Light pink lace panties,_ ' his mind mentally remembered the sight, as she let go of the nightie that was dancing naughty around her thighs. A low growl escaped his mouth that he couldn't suppress.

Bonnie easily turned around with a sway in her hips. She raised her look and saw him standing next to the door of the kitchen. She froze.

The music kept playing, but she stood like a statue watching him while he stood stone hard with his eyes wide open.

Neither one of them said the word for the next couple of seconds. She didn't know how long he was standing there, how much did he see and why the hell he hasn't said anything?

She diverted her look from him and the same second she did that, he did it too. She was looking straight at the sink and he was looking at the floor. Her mouth formed words, but nothing came out.

His eyes curiously seek for one more look at her and as much as he wanted to fight it, his eyes had a mind of his own.

Bonnie was too embarrassed as the words of the song kept playing, so she collected her rope quickly from the floor and stormed out of the kitchen. She went out like the wind, leaving a confused Damon with his eyes glued to the doors, through which she just went out.

The song was still playing, when she got upstairs. It abruptly stopped when she got to the door of her room. She closed the door behind her and leaned against them, sliding down to her knees and covering her face with the rope she was still holding.

* * *

Bonnie spent the rest of the day closed up in her room. Even though she heard Damon left the house shortly after the 'incident', she just didn't have the guts to present herself in front of everybody.

So, that afternoon, Elena brought her an outfit from her house that she is supposed to wear at the tonight's dinner at the Gilbert's. She wasn't so keen on wearing a dress because it seemed too formal for a family dinner, but Elena told her it was Jenna's orders, plus she is going to be wearing one too.

Bonnie was very excited for the dinner because it would be her first outing from the Salvatore mansion, that didn't include sacrifices and runnings for her life. Plus, she really needed to get out of the house tonight.

She wore a simple black v neck dress, that stopped midthigh. It was pretty tight and it hugged her curves just right. She matched it with black ankle boot heels with a gold zipper on the side and a black clutch bag with the same type of zipper. Her hair was in a nice sleek ponytail.

Elena was already at her house helping her aunt Jenna with the preparations, so she sent a taxi over to the mansion to pick her up.

Once she arrived in front of the Gilbert's house, she took careful steps to the door.

She knocks on the door and a very surprised Elena opens it.

„Oh, hey!" the girl says „You're already here. You're early."

„The cab was early there.. so..." Bonnie answers and her voice strain when she notices Elena is wearing the same shirt and jeans like earlier today.

„Where's your dress?" she asks surprisingly, knowing she is a little early, but the dinner was set in twenty minutes, so she thinks Elena should be already dressed.

„Com' on in." Elena invites her. She silently obliges and notices the other girl has an embarrassing expression on her face.

„Where is Jenna?" She asks suspiciously when she notices the silence in the house.

„Yeah, listen," Elena says with a smile on her face taking a deep breath and a sheepish expression on her face. „There's been a slight change of plan. You see, Jenna has a date with Alaric tonight and they preferred to be alone...so..."

„She's not gonna be at the dinner?" Bonnie cuts her of.

„No."

Bonnie shrugs in disappointment, but she dismisses it quickly, turning her head towards the kitchen.

„Well, okay then. But, we are still having dinner, right?" she asks, examining the house, because it is the first time she remembers being in here.

Elena doesn't speak, just bits her lip. Bonnie turns back to the girl, raising her eyebrows.

„Elena?" she calls her.

The girl in the question sighs in defeat and taking a step closer to her friend she talks.

„Okay. You are a little early as I said, so I thought it would've all be ready before you got here."

She doesn't have a chance to say anything else and Bonnie doesn't get a chance to ask her either because Jeremy comes down the stairs. He is dressed in a black suit with a white shirt under and no tie. His hair is nicely combat and his eyes are shiny brown. He wears white teeth grin on his face as he makes his way over to her.

„Bonnie. You're here." He says and when he stands closer, his cologne hits her nose and suddenly she understands what this is.

„You look amazing." He compliments her and she smiles tightly, just to be polite. She diverts her look to Elena, who is standing beside them and watching them with a toothy smile on her face and maybe even a glow in her eyes. She looks at Bonnie and composes herself, but the smile is still on.

„I should get going." She simply states, grabbing her coat and purse with her, but before she can think about leaving, Bonnie stops her.

„Wait! You're leaving?" she asks her incredulously, even though she sort of expected that from her. „But...the dinner...?"

„Is on the table in the kitchen." Elena cuts her of. „And the candles and the matches are on the kitchen counter." She says looking at Jeremy, who just nods in understanding. „I got a cab waiting outside for me and Stefan at home, so I'm going." She says putting the coat on „And Jenna is not coming back for a very looong time. You both have the house for yourselves." She says with a wink.

„Elena..." Bonnie hisses in warning, but the other girl just smiles and turns around.

She opens the front door, but she smacks herself on the forehead and turns back to the pair out. „Oh! I almost forgot!" she says with a stupid smile and walks into the living room, grabbing a CD in her hand and putting it on the stereo. She presses play and heads for the door again.

A very cheesy romantic song starts playing and she playfully smiles to Bonnie. Closing the door behind herself, she yells „You two have fun!".

* * *

They are sitting in the living room of the Gilbert's house and eating the dessert, a chocolate souffle. They already had dinner and spend it making awkward small talk about the food or the weather.

She's sitting on the couch on the left and Jeremy's on her right, with his right leg tucked under him and his body turned in her direction. He's giving her his full attention.

„This dessert is really amazing." She comments politely.

He takes a spoon in his mouth and after swallowing, he nods.

„Yes. It's great. I, uhm...I'm glad you like it." He smiles.

„I do." She feels kind of stupid answering this. „I like your hous-" she starts turning to face him, but she doesn't manage to say what she wants. Long fingers softly grab her chin and with his thumb he whips her lower lip.

His eyes are looking at her lips and she feels trapped, like in bad romantic comedy that Caroline likes to watch. Only she is the girl here, but she is not charmed or crazy in love with her date.

She doesn't even know her date. He should be her prince charming on a white horse and she should be the helpless princess, falling madly in love with him, yearning for his kisses and touches, because he is so perfect, his hair is great and he looks good in a suit.

But, in reality, his hair has way too much gel on it and his suit is wrinkled and looks too big on him. She doesn't yearn for his kiss, she even slightly backs away, so when and if he makes a move she has time to stop it.

„You had a little chocolate." He says awkwardly and gets back to eating his desert.

She sighs and disposes of the spoon on the plate, putting the same plate on the coffee table and readjusts herself on the couch so she can look at Jeremy, creating a bigger distance between them.

„Jeremy?" she asks quietly. „Can I ask you something?"

He looks at her and sees her face expression is unsure and senses she is uncomfortable.

„Of course." He says and sets his plate down too.

„Did you plan this all... for tonight? Was it suppose to be...like...like a date?" she asks unsure of her words.

„Well...Something like that." He admits embarrassed. „Only, Elena planned the most of it. I didn't really know how to ask you."

He lowers his look from her and she feels bad for him. She understands that in this world they are madly in love and she understands that it must be hard when your girlfriend doesn't know you.

„Are you mad?" he asks her.

„No." She tells him, altough she is not sure she is telling him the true. She just doesn't want to hurt him anymore. „It's okay."

„Really?"

„Yes." She smiles. He smiles too. „It is getting pretty late. I should get going." She says and stands from the couch. He follows her lead.

„Oh... Okay. You know... you could stay a little while. I got a movie we could watch or we can talk if you want."

„No. That's all right." She says and turns her back to him, trying to get out of the living room.

He stops her. „Bonnie, wait." He calls for her and catches her elbow to get her to turn and face him. She does that and he looks at her, inhaling a deep breath and not letting go of her hand, takes a step closer to her.

He puts his lips on hers and she is surprised by his bold move. She can't even close her eyes, they are wide open and she doesn't move a muscle while he slightly sucks her upper lip.

He uses his other hand to hold her cheek and to get her somehow to participate in the kiss.

She moves her lips in an obligation for just a moment and then backs him away by putting her hands on his chest.

She pushes her lips in a thin line and steps away from him.

„I really should go, now." She says shortly. She turns and heads for the hallway, grabbing her coat from the hanger.

He follows her silently.

„Does it bother you that I kissed you?"

She stops her moves and slowly turns to face him again.

„It's weird." She says and he looks disapointed and hurt. „I'm sorry. But, this whole night has been weird. I mean... I wasn't expecting a romantic date with my boyfriend who I don't remember and..." she pauses seeing that the more she talks the more hurt he looks. „It's a bit much."

He nods sadly.

„I'm sorry for putting you in this position." He tells her honestly, with his hands in his pockets. „I just... I miss you... so much. I just wanted to see you and talk to you, but Elena went all crazy and too much for tonight. I just asked for her help, because I don't know how to talk to you."

They stay silent for a moment.

„Well, let me give you a tip for next time," Bonnie says sudenlly, making Jeremy raise his look on her. „If you want to talk to me, just talk. And if you want a date, ask _me_ on one."

„Next time?" he asks hopefully. „So, there could be a next time?"

She puts her coat on and buttons it up. She looks at him and smiles warmly at him.

„Only if you ask me."

He smiles and when he opens his mouth to say something, she cuts him off.

„But, not too soon."

He closes his mouth in understaning and nods his head while she continues.

„Also, don't wait too long. I could find another courtier very soon." She says jokingly and flips her ponytail in a seducitve way. „Pretty girl like me has a big number of those on her list."

She laughs at her joke and Jeremy follows her lead, noding his head.

„That is very true."

* * *

„You're back early." Elena greets her when she enters the Salvatore mansion. After the disastrous date, Jeremy called her a cab to get her safely home because she didn't want to bother him with it.

„I wasn't expecting you get back so soon," Elena says. She is already dressed in her pyjamas and she's holding a mug in her hand with hot tea in it. She was on her way out of the kitchen when Bonnie entered the house.

The caramel colored girl doesn't say a word to the other girl, as she walks into the living room, putting her purse on a small table.

„Did you had a nice time?"

Bonnie throws her a nasty look while taking her coat off and tossing it on the sofa at the living room.

„Bonnie?" Elena asks her with her raised brows. „Is something wrong?"

„Everything is fine." She says finally in a sarcastic tone, looking at the girl angrily.

„So...how was your date with Jeremy?" Elena asks a little unsure.

„Funny. I didn't know I was supposed to have a date tonight."

Elena tilts her head a little and smiles.

„Oh, com' on. It was sweet, you got to admit that."

Bonnie frowns, shaking her head to the girl.

„Goodnight, Elena." She says shortly and grabing her purse she heads out of the room.

„Bonnie, wait!" The doubleganger starts following the other girl. „Bonnie, com' om!" She outruns her and steps in front of her, holding her elbow. „Are you really that mad? Bonnie, Jeremy just wanted to spend some time with you. You can't be that mad at him."

„I'm not mad at him. I'm mad at you." Bonnie crosses her arms and furrows her brows. „I don't like to be anbushed into a date. It's not something I find sweet or nice."

„Ooh." The other girl says, looking at the floor for a moment. „I'm sorry about that." She raises her look again and smiles „But, you still stayed for dinner. Com' on, tell me how was it?"

„It was bad. It was awkward."

The smile on Elena's lips disappears. Bonnie sighs, letting her hands fall down in the line with her body.

„Look. Don't get me wrong. I'm sure, Jeremy is a great guy and I can understand why I would like him, but I don't like the type of guy who needs his sister to set him on a date because he is too scared to ask me himself. I don't see myself going for that type."

„Good. Because Jeremy is not that type." Elena tells her with certainty while Bonnie rolls her eyes and throws her a look that says _Really?_

„Look, it wasn't his fault for tonight. I did that."

„That's the point I'm trying to make, Elena!" Bonnie cuts her off angrily. „You did that. You set this whole thing up tonight and tricked me!"

The witch looks angry at her friend that seems lost for words right now.

„I don't know where you think you get the right to tell me what to do and what to feel, but you have no saying in the decisions I make for myself." She tells her determinedly.

„I know, Bonnie. That's not my intention." The doubleganger says, trying to explain herself. „ I just... I know how much you both care for each other and how good you two are together. You make him happy and he makes you happy, too. Is it so bad that I wanted to see you both happy?" She doesn't wait for an answer. „I just wanted to help."

„That's the last thing you did tonight." Bonnie says flatly. „Because now, Jeremy is hurt and I am hurt, too. You're supposed to be my friend, you're supposed to support me and be there for me. But, that's not what you do. You go behind my back, keep secrets from me and try to make me fall in love with the guy you think is proper for me. It makes me ask myself a question 'why am I friends with you at all?'"

„"Oh, God!" Elena exclaims. „I am so sorry, Bonnie. I really am. I-I...I didn't mean to hurt you. I thought I was helping. I thought you needed my help."

„What I need from you is to stop meddling where you're not called for."

„Right, you're right." Elena nods.

„Okay. I'm gonna go to bed. I'm tired." Bonnie says shortly, with her face expression cold.

„Good night."

„Good night."

* * *

She marches upstairs straight to her room, entering it and closing the door behind her. She sighs heavily as she walks over to her bed and holding herself to the side of it, she removes her boots from her feet. She goes over to the closet and puts the boots next to it. Just as she does that, the door of her room falls open.

She looks over to the intruder, her green eyes meeting his blue eyes that inspect her whole figure.

After what happened this morning, it's surprising he is here. She feels like they should be avoiding each other and maybe acting as if this morning never really happened.

She feels frustrated because he keeps standing at the doorway not saying a word.

„Ever heard of knocking?" she asks him with an attitude.

„I did." He answers raising his eyebrows. „Doesn't mean I use it. Especially not in my own house." He throws her a devilish look.

It feels strange. Like she's supposed to understand the meaning behind his words, which she probably does, but it still feels a little too reaching. It is his house, so he can enter any room with no hesitation or expectancy from what's on the other side.

„Well, I prefer if you did. I was planning on changing my clothes. You could've walked on a half naked me." She sasses him. It comes out a tiny bit huskier than she originally thought, but she raises her head high.

He wiggles his eyebrows at her playfully, like he's challenging her or something.

„Like I would mind that." He says quietly, his eyes roaming over her body. She feels her mouth going dry, so she just shakes the thoughts of her mind as she marches over to her bed.

She can't lose her grip with this. She needs to be cold headed.

He notices her bad mood, but her appearance picks his interest more.

 _'That dress!'_

His eyes follow her showing smooth legs and fall on her round ass. The dress is a tight one and she looks good in it.

He's seen women before. You would think that after a century and a half of watching them, you would see it all. But, he always finds something new in every each one of them.

That's why he considers himself a lover. He may be a scary, bad vampire and a killer, but he is a lover before all. He loves women, he can't get enough of them and it's not perverted or kinky, it's passionate.

He's a passionate man, a gifted and unselfish lover. Women crave for him and his touch because he is so good at it. He's got the moves, he worships every single woman he ever brought to bed and neither one of them left unsatisfied.

And, boy, he would sure satisfy her. She would want that, too, he can tell by the way she responds to his looks. He would make the witch scream in extasy, yearning for more and more to come.

„You need something?" Bonnie interrupts his thoughts.

He shakes them out of his head and diverts his look to the side. He casually shrugs his shoulders when she looks at him searching for an answer.

He walks inside of the room, inspecting her stuff over. He looks over the photo albums and journals Caroline and Elena brought to her, the night before.

„How was your date?" He asks with a hint of cynism in his voice.

She furrows her brows and crosses her arms looking at him.

„How did you know it was a date?"

„I picked on Elena's glee of hope while she was talking to Stefan about it." He says flipping through a family album that has pictures of Bonnie and her father from her childhood. She was a cute baby.

„Plus, your sour face gave you away." He raises to look at her.

„I don't have a sour face." She defends herself.

„Hey, I'm not judging you." He says casually and jumps over to her bed, crossing his legs in the process and leaning on the headboard of her bed, with a photo album still in his hands.

„A date with little Gilbert? Can't think how anybody could stay in a good mood after that."

She doesn't comment on it, because she knows it would be hypocrite of her to agree with him, seeing as she is 'little Gilbert's girlfriend'. Then again, she can't even stand in Jeremy's defence, because nothing pushes her to do it.

So, she lets the comment slide and walks over to the mirror, getting her ears free from the massive golden earings she's been wearing. She massages lightly her earlobes from irritation, closing her eyes and a moan of relief leaves her breath.

She doesn't catch Damon's eyes following her, swallowing and mentally saving her moves and the sounds that she makes. When she raises her look, she sees him looking directly at the photos not distracted from anything.

She turns around and leans her back behind on the dresser beneath the mirror. She looks over at Damon and inspects him from head to toe, her hand strongly gripping the dresser behind her.

She observes his black thick hair, strong cheekbones and a muscular body that looks carved like in a Greek god, even with clothes covering it. He may be an ass, but his physical appearance is not half bad.

He raises his look and blue eyes attack her breathing. They are so blue. She takes a deep breath, putting her mind out of the gutter and raising her head high.

„Damon, I'm tired. I would like to go to bed now." She says politely.

He sits in his place, still holding the album and inspects her for a moment. Then he closes the photo album, rises swiftly from the bed and tosses it on the nightstand beside the bed.

She sighs in relief and thinks he is going to march out of her room any moment now, but he surprises her and walks over to her. She looks at him with wide eyes as he makes his way to her.

„You and Elena had words?" he asks her.

Of course, he eavesdropped the entire conversation and now he's here to get more dirt out of her.

„I don't see how that's any of your business." She tells him.

He shrugs „It's not." He says shortly.

He stands closely to her, his eyes straight on hers. His look is strong and bold, so she responds him the same.

The silence takes over the room, with their looks cutting hard into each other.

Then he surprises her by letting his eyes drop on her lips, neck and chest. It breaks the heavy tension between them and strikes another kind.

He takes another step closer to her as he softly holds her elbow to get her even closer to him. She leans over, her back missing the contact of the strong background and her breath catches in her throat.

She doesn't move a muscle and her body goes rigid and trembling when he reaches his other hand behind her touching the skin on her back.

His eyes flicker from her eyes to her exposed neck. The look is dim and dark in a warm way. Her body is an inch away from his and she feels the need to lean and crash on him. She sets her hand on his chest to hold herself straight.

But, her surprise grows only more when his hand behind her grabs the zipper of the dress and holds it in place. Her eyes go wide before he makes a move and he looks as if he is about to swallow her whole.

He slowly starts to pull the zipper down, while holding her closely to himself. A moan escapes from her mouth while the tightness of the dress loosens up as he unzips it, his eyes on her the whole time.

Their faces are too close she feels his breath on her face.

His hand unzips her dress to the half of her back and although he is tempted to go further he stops abruptly.

He moves his hands of off her and takes a step back, sticking his hand in his pockets and looking a little confused at an even more confused Bonnie.

She stands frozen in her place, her hands hugging herself, not to let the dress fall from her upper body. She is surprised by Damon's move because she doesn't need help with her dress, she didn't ask him for it, but he certainly did it.

And what surprises her more is that he stops middle way, as if someone just poured cold water on him and told him 'what the hell are you doing, man?'.

Shame washes over her face and she looks to the side, not raising him one look. He hesitates in his stand, one of his hand rubbing all over his face.

„Right..." he whispers.

He turns around, walks in unsteady steps to the place he stood before he dared to go over her like he wants to rewind the last minute. He looks over at her for a moment, seeing she's lost at words, opens his mouth to speak...

„Goodnight."

And then turns around and walks out of the room, closing the door loudly behind him.


	10. Chapter 10 - An agreement

**_Finally, chapter 10! We got a bit of Stefonnie, Monnie and Bamon in this one! Leave a review if you can!_**

* * *

 _Chapter 10 - An agreement_

 _She stands in a long cold hallway. Her eyes are wide open and her long dress is wrinkled and smudged with blood and dirt. She tries to brush it off, but it doesn't help._

 _There are four set of doors in the hallway. She observes them carefully, taking small steps over to the last doors on the right. She stands in front of the door, uneasy breaths leaving her lungs. Her hand reaches for the doorknob._

 _She doesn't want to open them, but something inside her is pushing it to do it. Her stomach clenches and her throat dries. She feels obligated to do so, even though her gut is telling her not to._

 _She presses her palm over the door knob and twists it on the side. The door loosens up and she pushes them open. It's just darkness inside. She takes a careful step forward._

 _Then it happens. The moment her foot crosses the threshold, her body goes rigid, her blood feels cold crossing through her veins and on her chest she feels the big weight like it's gonna crush her down._

 _She retracts her foot and takes a step back in fear, watching closely the darkness inside. She frowns when she hears a distant sound inside. Like music coming from somewhere inside,a familiar music, a lullaby grams use to sing to her when she was little._

 _Without even noticing, she takes a step forward listening carefully the music and it's too late for her to escape when the darkness grabs her and takes her inside._

Her eyes open suddenly and she finds herself in an unknown room. She sits on the bed and it takes a few minutes to remember she is at the Salvatore house.

She exhales heavily in relief, carefully getting up from the bed, walking towards the window and opening the curtains to let the daylight shine the room. She watches the sun bursting through the trees, the colors of the spring announcing a beautiful, warm day and it soothes her soul.

When she enters the kitchen, she finds Stefan standing by the coffee machine.

„Morning. You're up early." He comments.

„Morning." She says, making her way over to the kitchen aisle and taking a seat.

„Coffie?"

„Yes, please."

He turns around to find another mug in the kitchen cabinet while waiting for the coffee maker to do his business. He looks over to Bonnie, who is sitting strangely still, her eyes directed at the counter in front of her and her face expression telling something is on her mind.

„Is everything all right?" he asks her, noticing she's a bit drifted away in her thoughts.

„Yes." She raises her head to him, shaking the thoughts out of her head nodding politely.

He pours two mugs full of hot coffee and joins her at the kitchen isle.

„You know, if there is something, that's bothering you...you can talk to me?" he tells her warmly.

„I know. Thank you," she smiles to him.

They sit in quiet for a few minutes, enjoying the coffee and silence of the early morning.

„Are you still mad about last night?" he asks carefully, after a while

„What about last night?" she asks with her eyes wide open.

„About Elena? She told me you two had a little argument..."

„Oh..." she sighs. „Right. Yeah."

„You know, she didn't mean anything bad. She's just...Jeremy is her brother and you are her best friend...she thought she was looking out for you. I told her it was a bad idea, but she didn't listen..."-

„You knew?" Bonnie frowns at him.

He watches her carefully „Well, I-..."-

„You knew and you didn't tell me?" she asks him surprisingly.

„Well, it wasn't my place to say anything."

„You knew! Unbelievable!" And now she's mad.

„Plus, Elena is my girlfriend." He says quietly.

„And I am your friend." She reasons.

„Elena's my girlfriend." He repeats slowly.

But, she ignores him. „So, I would expect it from you, my friend, to tell me or at least warn me about something like that. That's what friends do, right? Unless, we're not friends?"

„Yes, we are." He frowns now.

„Than why didn't you say anything?" she asks expectantly.

„Because, Elena is my girlfriend." He says strongly.

„What does that even mean?" she snorts in frustration.

„Just that. She is my girlfriend."

She observes him, trying to read something out of his expression and when she sees it, she bursts into laughter.

„God..." she sighs and shakes her head. „You are totally whipped."

He smiles. „Yeah. I really am."

They both laugh.

„I'm sorry." He says.

„Just... Whatever." She dismisses it with a wave of her hand and takes a sip of her coffee. She looks over at him again and takes a deep breath before opening her mouth.

„Do you mind if I ask you something?"

„Of course not."

„It's just...I don't really know who else to talk to...?" she says awkwardly.

„Bonnie." She raises her eyes to him. „Tell me. I'm here. I'm listening."

„I think I need to learn more...about the spells and witch...things..."

„You want to learn how to be a witch?"

„Yeah. I was wondering...if maybe there is some way for me to get an insight...on witchcraft and spells. You know? When the Klaus thing was going on, I found a book that his warlock had, and it had a lot of interesting things in it. Helpful things."

„You want grimoires."

„Is that what it's called?"

„Yes." Stefan nods his head. „And we can get them."

„Really?" she asks surprised.

„Yeah. You have a number of those at your house. If you want, we can go get them. I'll take you."

„Yes! Yes, I would love that." She says excitedly.

„Okay. How about tomorrow? I have plans for today already?"

„Sure."

„Okay. Tomorrow after school, I'll pick you up and we'll stop by your house."

„Thank you. That's really great." Bonnie smiles at first but then frowns confusingly. „And also, surprising? How come you're all of the sudden okay with this?"

Stefan sighs. „Well, I think we should cut you some slack. I know, Elena is very dominant when it comes to you and your choices and I know how it can be frustrating sometimes."

„She is a handful."

„She means well. Plus, I think you have a very good instinct and you're trustworthy."

„I'm not so sure about that. All of this is very new to me and very confusing. I don't really know my _nature_ that well." She comments unsure.

„Well, it comes with practice. You just have to be patient."

„I guess."

Stefan observes her face expression. Something is still on her mind, but she doesn't say anything.

„Is there something more?" he asks her.

„No, no." She dismisses it and continues to drink her coffee.

„Well, yes." She finally says after a couple of seconds of silence. „I've been having these dreams..."

„What kind of?"

She takes a big breath and stops „Weird. I don't know, really...I'm not even sure how to describe them. They seem very...intense. I think."

„There is a possibility, that it could be your memories." he says.

„I don't think that they are. They don't seem like memories or flashbacks or anything like that. And, it's weird, because, it's always different. They don't repeat themselves, they just happen and I know they are somehow connected."

„You are a witch and sometimes, you can get sort of visions, maybe some kind of warnings of the future events...It has happened before..."

She keeps quiet.

„How are they connected?" he keeps up with the questions.

„Through the feeling. Every time, I get this very weird, cold feeling."

„How exactly?"

„I'm not sure."

„Try to remember it. What was it like?"

She thinks for a little in her head, trying to remember the dreams and how it felt. She closes her eyes, taking a deep breath as she reminisces.

„I think it's...something like distance...or unknown...like fear. Yeah, I could definitely say it's fear."

She opens her eyes and sees Stefan's confused and worried face. She sighs heavily.

„God, I don't know. I mean, I usually don't have big dreams, and I never actually thought about them, but this was weird. It kind stuck on me. I don't' think I'm making any sense." She finishes with a humorless laugh.

Stefan nods his head for a little and then scoops a little closer to her.

„You know, as a witch, you have the ability to have your dreams come to you more vividly. So, it helps you detect something that's there, but that nobody else could see it. You're more prone to the details and feelings, and those are exactly the thing that witches use in making decisions. Big decisions."

„I'm not sure I understand." She says confused.

„A witch is a powerful mystical being. The rules that apply in the supernatural world are mostly made by witches. They were the first ones around when the Earth started to exist. The vampires, werewolves...they were made after. Mostly, by witches."

Bonnie frowns in thinking, but Stefan keeps going.

„What I'm trying to say is, big decisions are made based on an instinct. That's how, in my opinion, a good witch acts. Her emotions guide her and she does what she feels is the right thing."

„But, what if that instinct is wrong?" she stops him. „What if, a witch is just a hormonal 18-year-old high school girl? How is she suppose to guide herself to her emotions, if she's just a ticking bomb of teenage hormones that are clouding her judgment?"

He smiles. „In my experience, one of the best decisions, made by simple humans or supernatural creatures, are the ones made in a moment of pure passion and emotional wrecks. Those are the most honest and most purest moments of our lives."

„So, how does that reflect on my dreams?" she asks hi suspiciously.

„I don't know. I can't know that. Only you can. Your dreams are made of your emotions, desires, and motives. Freud use to say that dreams are a _royal road to the unconscious._ So, your dreams are saying something to you. You just need to listen to them, and you will know."

„You make it sound so simple." She comments sarcastically.

He laughs „Well, most of the things are simple. But, it's a human's prerogative to complicate them. It's what actually makes things interesting."

„You are a real philosopher, you know that?" she tells him jokingly.

„Well, I love philosophy, I actually had a major in one of my college experiences."

She laughs. „Yeah, I can imagine you with a sheet around your body, a laurel crown over your head and a feather pen in your hand."

He pokes her shoulder as her laughter fills the room.

„Now, you're just teasing me."

„No, I gotta admit, I think you probably looked hot hanging out with your friends Aristotle and Polemon. The ladies must have fallen over your feet."

„Hey, watch it, little lady!" he jokingly threatens her with his finger.

„I'm just joking." She says with a wide smile on her face. „It's nice. To talk to you like that. You're a very good and smart guy, Stefan." She tells him honestly.

„Thank you, Bonnie. And I think you are a lovely and beautiful young lady." He takes her hand in his and reaches it toward his lips, leaving a quick kiss on it. They smile warmly to each other.

A clearing of a throat makes them broke their contact and direct their attentions to the kitchen entrance. Damon is standing there, observing them carefully.

„Am I interrupting something?" he asks cryptically.

Bonnie pulls her hand from Stefan's grasp and diverts her eyes to the floor.

„Good morning, Damon." Stefan greets him flatly.

„Morning." He says and makes his way inside, as he watches suspiciously the pair. There are empty coffee mugs on the counter, which means they've been here a while.

Bonnie quickly stands up from her seat, to leave the room, as soon as possible.

„Bonnie?" Stefan stops her. „Do you want some breakfast?"

„No." She tells him quickly. „Thank you for the coffee and...you know...talk."

„Sure, anytime."

She sees Damon behind Stefan raising his eyebrows.

„I'm gonna go now." She says quickly and leaves.

Stefan picks the mugs from the counter and puts them in the sink, splashing the water over them.

„What were you two talking about?" Damon asks pouring himself the coffee.

„We were just having coffee and a nice friendly conversation." Stefan answers not lifting his eyes to his brother.

„Seemed a little more than friendly for a moment there," Damon comments bitterly.

„What?" Stefan raises his look.

„Well, I mean...you were touching and smiling-"

„Touching?-"

„-and she was all weird around? You seemed very close."

Stefan observes his older brother in confusion. Then he shakes his head and rolls his eyes.

„I'm gonna go upstairs. Check on Elena." He says already turning his back on him and choosing to ignore the cranky vampire.

„You see? Now, you're weird." Damon says. „You weren't thinking about checking on Elena a few minutes ago?"

Stefan turns to his brother one more time before he leaves the room.

„Around you, Damon...everybody becomes weird. Trust me, I speak from experience."

* * *

The next day, Bonnie was getting a little frustrated. Stefan had promised her to take her to her house after school, but instead he brought her himself one grimoire from her house. He said she had a number of those and then he brings just one. She had a sneaky suspicion Elena had something to do with it.

He just left her the grimoire and told her he will get the rest some other day. Then he left to spend the afternoon with Elena. Bonnie was in her room, sorting out her clothes in the closet. She knew Damon was at home, somewhere downstairs, probably drowning in bourbon, but she had no intention to get in there.

She heard a roaring sound outside of her open window, so she walked over to see what it was. Her face light up when she saw a familiar truck parking in front of the Salvatore mansion.

She hurried up downstairs to welcome her friend. By the time she got to the front door, Damon has already opened them. She rolled her eyes at his comment, something about quarterback's aim.

The blue eyed boy ignored the vampire and passed by him when he saw Bonnie. He smiled widely at her like she did to him and embraced her tightly.

„Oh, Matt!" she exclaimed happily when they separated from the hug. „I am so glad to see you!"

„Yeah, I tried to visit you sooner, but these past few days have been crazy, you know?"

„Tell me about it." She laughed.

The boy turned to look at Damon for a moment, who was silently watching them and then faced Bonnie.

„Bon, is there somewhere we can talk, privately?"

The witch glanced at the vampire in question and then took Matt by the hand pulling him with herself.

„Sure. Com'on, we can go to my room."

They were already on their way when they heard a deep voice behind them stopping them.

„Wow! Hey! No, no, no! What do you think you're doing?"

They turned around to face the irritating vampire.

„You got a problem, Damon?" Bonnie asked him flatly.

„Yes. Actually." He said frowning. „You can't go upstairs with him."

„Why not?" she asked with her eyebrows rising.

„Because this is my house and I bring out the rules." He said proudly.

„Actually, it's Elena's house."

„I heard it's Elena's house, now."

Both Bonnie and Matt said at the same time, and they laughed at each other, probably high fiving themselves telepathically.

„Don't try to outsmart me!" Damon said. „You can use the library."

„Yeah, I don't think so. I don't want your stupid vampire eavesdropping on our conversation." Bonnie commented bitterly.

„Sweaty, my vampire eavesdropping works even if you're in your room. I can hear other people's conversations miles away."

„Whatever." She said and turned her back on him and proceeded to go upstairs. „Com'on, Matt."

„At least, leave the door open! I don't want any hanky-panky in the house unless I'm involved in it!"

Matt turned to him and looked at him confusingly, but Bonnie pulled the boy with herself. „Ignore him."

They were already hallway to the stairs when he tossed them one more comment.

„I will come check on you every ten minutes, just so you know! Sooner if it gets too quiet!"

„What the hell is his problem?" Matt asked laughing, once they were in Bonnie's room.

Bonnie closed the door behind her loudly, just to spite the vampire downstairs.

„He's Damon. He is his own problem." She said as she cleared her bed from the clothes, so they can sit on. Matt inspected the room and it was obvious he was impressed.

„Wow, Bon. This is one hell of a room."

„I know, it's pretty great." She said smiling.

„You know, I never was on the upstairs floor yet. I mean, down is impressive, but this is crazy. It's like a freaking castle." He said looking out of the window. „I understand now why you're here."

Bonnie turned the TV on and picked the volume up, to stop any creeper to hear their conversation.

„As impressive as it is... the reason house is not the reasonI am here." She said sadly.

„Yeah, I know. Jeremy told me everything." The blue eyed boy said. „You really don't remember anything?"

„It's not that I don't remember...I have different memories. It's like they are replaced somehow." She said, dropping herself to sit on the bed tiredly.

„That day in the woods..." Matt started „Did you knew who I was?"

„Yes." She smiled. „I don't know how, but...you are my first and the only face I could place in my life. You're my oldest friend, Matt. I still remember how we met. You pushed me in the mud when I took your ball."

He smiled. „Yeah, I remember. You had pigtails."

„And a new dress my Grams just bought me!" she reminded him.

They laughed and he sat down next to her.

„Are you sure this is a safe place for you? I mean, it's your decision, Bon, but, wouldn't it be better if you stay away from the Salvatores?" he asked her worriedly.

„I don't know. I just know that if I want to find out what is happening to me, I have to be here. Stefan and Damon are the ones who can help me with that."

„For Stefan...I get it. He's nice. Sometimes. But, Damon...Honestly, Bon, you gotta be careful with him. You never know what you're getting into with him."

„Don't worry, Matt. I can handle Damon."

„He's just weird. I don't like the fact that my hot and pretty best friend is hanging out around him. He's got a reputation."

„Of a man's whore?" Bonnie asks jokingly. „I know all about that. Trust me, I already had more than enough information on that. Plus, I am not worried he's gonna transfer his fixation on me, when Elena's in the house, too."

„Well, as you said...he's a man's whore. I don't he would mind."

She looked at him weirdly, but the boy just shrugged. She dismissed his comment and reminded herself, that the vampire was still downstairs and she wanted to avoid him hearing them talking about him.

* * *

The following days Damon avoided her like a plague. Every time he heard her going downstairs, he would exit the house with no word or go to another room.

When she was in the kitchen, he was at the library. When she was at the library, he was in his room. When he would hear her coming upstairs he would close and lock the door of his room.

And when they were obligated to be in the same room, he would keep his eyes plastered to his bourbon filled glass... or in better case... Elena.

Ah yes, Elena. The brunette beauty that always calmed his senses. Something about her made him perpetually happy. Maybe it was the fact she would always squirm when she would feel his eyes on her.

He would smirk at her while she would slowly shake her head at him. Then he would make an impropriate comment, that had a double meaning and she would sigh hard and knew it was directed at her. Then he would wink at her, and she would search for Stefan's hand to hold. Yes...Elena.

At least he had that distraction.

But, when had she become that? She was not too long ago the realization of his dreams, the sight for his sore eyes and the song for his deaf ears. So, when did she fall on the lower list, and been replaced by... Bonnie freaking Bennett?

The girl that was residing in his own house and with whom he was obligated to cross paths with. The girl whose spicy smell he could feel wafting at night in his bedroom , causing him to have inappropriate dreams and thoughts about.

The girl that constantly made fell like a jealous boyfriend, every time she would engage in a conversation with another specimen of the stronger sex.

Maybe he was sick. Maybe he was dying of a terrible disease that only vampires get and it played him with crazy judgment and hallucinations until he'd hit the fence. Or maybe he was under a curse. With all the witches we've met through his exitance, he shouldn't be surprised that one of them would hold a grudge.

He needed to take his mind in the right place. And two days ago, his prayers have been answered. He got a call from an old friend, so he decided he would go away for the weekend. The place he was supposed to be going was Myrtle Beach. He'd fly over there on Friday early morning.

So, this afternoon, he decided it was the time he gets a little relaxed. Stefan and Elena were at school, playing a normal couple and Bonnie was at the town's library. Why she went to the public library was beyond him, seeing as there wasn't a book you can't find in the Salvatore library. Maybe the reason was she was avoiding him too.

But, he didn't want to think about it now. It was time for happy thoughts. He was at his library, sitting in his favorite chair, with his legs lifted up on a footstool, a glass of his favorite bourbon in his hand. The stereo was blasting with the classic Pearl Jam hits.

The great American 90's rock band was one of his favorite. He mostly liked to listen to them when he was in a good mood. The next song started playing and a smile crept on his lips.

 _Last kiss._ The cover of a 1960s ballad made by _J. Frank Wilson and the Cavaliers_. The song was played at the 60's decade dance. Sure it was another cover, but he liked the version _Pearl Jam_ made.

His insides started to tingle when he remembered the dance. He closed his eyes trying to repeat in his head the dance with his beautiful, sweet Elena.

 _''You're good at this!''_

 _''I got moves you've never seen!''_

 _Her melodious laughter filled his ears as if he was listening to her right now. He swayed her to the sound of the music and he made her forget the world for a moment. He made her smile in the middle of problems and disasters. And she made him forget for a moment, too. They were lost for a second, with no worries, no lies, no problems. It was just them._

He hummed along with the music of the song as he replayed the dance.

 _He was thinking about Elena, about her purple colorful dress, her big doe brown eyes, her pouty little lips drowned in a smile, her long ponytail hair falling around her face as he swayed her in rhythm._

 _And then, her straight hair turned into messy locks, her eyes adopted a greenish light in them, her mouth was heart-shaped, and her skin tone was caramel note._

 _''Careful, Damon! I might start to think you actually care!'' she sassed him._

 _''We wouldn't want that!''_

 _Her devilish smile was replaced with a millisecond length surprise on her face as he turned her and pushed her in a flawlessly did dance move. Her hair was swinging around her face and she looked like a goddess to him. And then he pulled her strongly against his chest for just a moment, enough to breath in her spicy, yet sweet smell he was so secretly fond of._

His eyes burst open and he ran over to the stereo to turn off the music.

What the hell was happening to him? Why did she always needed to molest his thoughts? She did that more than one time these past few days. He was blaming it on the sex dry. It had to be that. She was after all a girl living in his house, not to mention all her unintentional sexy moves and situations.

And just as he relaxed, and said to himself he was imagining stuff, the invader of his thoughts materialized herself at the entrance of the library. Bonnie stood there with a heavy book, that seemed as a grimoire, and was watching him curiously. She must have got home while the music was still playing because he didn't hear her.

„Hi." She said quietly and made her way in the room, to stand closer to him.

He fidgeted a little on his place, stuffing his hands in his jeans pocket and nodding his head in polite greeting. He started walking away, further the door to get out as soon as possible.

Just as he was about to step out, the door burst closed in front of his face, putting him in a closed space with the girl he was trying to avoid the last few days.

He turned to face her, and saw she was still holding the book close to her chest, but there was a determined face expression she was wearing.

„You did that?" he asked not moving from his spot pointing his finger on the closed door.

„Yeah." She shrugged casually.

He nodded. „Neat trick."

„Well, I've been practicing a few spells the last few days."

„Mhmm. So, does that mean my curtains from the kitchen are not really at the dry cleaner's?"

„Oh, no they are. But the carpet from the upstairs study room is not."

He narrowed his eyes at her.

„Lighting up the candles can be quite unpredictable."

„Magnificant."

He turned around and grabbed the door knob, opening the door, so he can leave the room when the doorknob slipped out of his hand and slammed the door in front of him again.

He looked back at the witch with a questioning look on his face. He walked over to her with an unpleasant expression.

„Is there a reason you keep slamming the door on me? Because let me tell you, every time the door are getting closer and closer to my face... and I am quite fond of my nose."

„You need to stop avoiding me." She told him sternly.

„Avoiding? What makes you think I'm avoiding you?"

„Because you are."

„You're crazy." He said and turned his back on her again so he can walk out, but she stopped him with her words.

„I need a favor."

He turned around to face her.

„What did you just say?" he asked mockingly.

„I need your help with something."

„I'm sorry, what?" he cupped his ear and pretended he didn't hear her.

„I said I need your help!" she yelled frustrated.

„Can I get that on tape? I just can't get enough of the satisfaction these words that are coming out of your mouth! Now, that's magnificent!" he mocked and laughed at himself.

„Could you stop being an asshole for a minute now?"

„Okay. I'll enjoy it later" he cleared his throat. „How exactly can I help you?"

„I need you to drive me to my house. Stefan has promised he would take me, like five days for now, but he keeps postponing it."

He rolled his eyes bored „Hang on. Why do you want to go to your house?"

She took a deep breath before answering.

„Stefan told me I have grimoires at my house, a number of them. He told me he thinks it's a good idea if I practice a little, but he lied. He went in my house alone and got me one grimoire and then told me we'll get the rest when he finds more time. He didn't find more time. And, what a shock it was, that Elena was supervising everything he was saying."

„So, you want me to take you home?"

„Yes."

„I don't think so." He says flatly.

„Why not?"

„Because, I don't want to."

She observes him for a moment.

„Because, you're a chicken." She states.

„What?"

„You are afraid to get on Elena's bad side again. You know, for a big bad vampire, you're actually a very big scaredy cat. A chicken." She mocks him.

„Hey!" he looks at her seriously. „There is not one chicken bone in my body. I just don't want to, because, I got nothing to gain out of it."

„Gain?" she asks slowly. „You don't want to do me a favor because you don't get anything out of it?"

„Exactly. What would I do such a thing? Because it would make me fell better to simply help someone?" He rolls his eyes again. „Please."

„Wow. I really underestimate the level of your stupidity."

He throws her a nasty look.

„What if I can actually give you something?" she asks him suspiciously.

„What could you possibly give me, that I would want from you?"

„A lot of things, really." She said smiling.

He raises his eyebrows suggestively. Her smile disappears instantly.

„Not that. I'll tell you a secret."

„A secret? You are kidding me?"

She shakes her head for no.

„Honey, I don't know what you been sniffing all day, but the last thing I want to know is how Caroline has a secret crush on wolf boy Lockwood. It's not much of a secret she thinks it is."

„Not that, dumbass. I assure you, this secret would be worth it. Very much."

„No." He says flatly.

„Did I mention it's about Elena?"

„I don't care. At all." He says bored.

She crosses her arms and smirks. She knows she's got him, there is no way he is gonna keep saying no. He turns to leave the room, but when he gets to the door, he stops, sighs heavily and faces her again.

„Get in the car." He says defiantly.

* * *

„Do you even have the key?" he asks her once they're on the porch of her house.

„Caroline left it when we had a sleepover." She answers quickly and twists the key in the keyhole, grabbing the door knob and pushing the door open.

„Here we go." She whispers as she enters the house.

She walks slowly, observing the house, looking around at the photos on the wall and a smile creeps on her face on the familiarity this house holds for her. It's a good thing her father is not at home, but on a business trip, so she can walk in freely and walk out without questions asked.

She turns to the front door, seeing Damon standing outside on the porch and looking around himself like he's counting the pores in the wooden door and floor.

„What are you doing?" she asks him exasperated.

„Well, I'll just wait here..." he starts.

„Just, get inside." she cuts him off.

He looks at her confusingly, frowning and crossing the threshold. He feels weird about this. She just invited him in with no problem, and he suspects she doesn't even know about the vampire-specific and invites in your home.

He should probably warn her before she does it with somebody else, somebody wrong. But, for now, he decides to dismiss it.

„Okay." He says quietly.

„I should probably check my room. Com' on." She tells him, already going upstairs.

She opens the door of her room and enters, looking carefully around.

„Weird." She frowns.

„What is?"

„It's exactly how I remember it." She says surprised. „I thought, it would be different somehow..." she shakes her head. „I'll check the closet. Would you take a look at the last two drawers over there?" she points to the dresser beside the window.

He slowly makes his way over and does as she told him, but he doesn't find anything. He stands up and opens the upper drawers to reveal the underwear. He raises his eyebrows and shrugs his shoulders, inspecting the garments.

„Did you find anything?" Bonnie asks him from the closet.

„Oh, I sure did." He says.

She turns to face him and he holds a purple-black lay bra against his chest.

„Very hot..."

„Would you leave that alone?" she tells him irritated.

„Why don't you have these at the boarding house?" he asks her holding a pair of red thongs in front of his face.

„Come here and help me." She hisses at him, trying to reach a box inside her closet, but she's too short.

„Maybe we should take some with us? If not for you, at least for me..." he wiggles his eyebrows at her.

„I don't think you would fit them." She tells him bitterly.

* * *

Half an hour later, they are in his car, driving back at the boarding house. Bonnie's flipping one of the grimoires they took on the passenger seat.

„So...you got your grimoires..." he comments slowly.

„Yes. I do."

„Anything else you would like to share?" he asks her cryptically.

She turns to him „Oh, yeah. Thanks." She smiles and turns back to inspect the rest of the grimoires.

He waits for a few moments if she's gonna say anything else, but she totally ignores him.

„I didn't mean that." He reminds her. „You said, if I drive you to your house, you would tell me a secret."

„I thought you didn't want any secrets."

She frowns at him. He looks at her confusingly and irritated.

„Okay. Fine." She sighs.

They slowly enter the Salvatore estate and he parks the car in front of the house. He turns the engine off and turns to her, waiting for her to spill.

„Caroline has a crush on Tyler." She says carefully to him.

„What...?" he blinks and shakes his head.

„I know! I couldn't believe it myself!" she says faking shock. „I mean, when I found out...it was like...boom, crash, bam! It hit me out of nowhere!"

She looks at him her eyes wide open and a slight smile on her face. Damon is still sitting still, blinking, not understanding what is going on.

She shrugs her shoulders and picks up her bag full of grimoires from the back seat, exiting the car and walking straight to the front door.

„You little minx!" she hears Damon yell from behind her. She turns to face him and sees him, already standing outside his car, closing the door angrily.

„You tricked me!" he points his finger at her as he advances her. „You told me- You are a very bad witch! There is no secret, is there?" he asks her mad, standing a few feet away from her.

She bursts into a laugh, but his face expression is still flat.

„Oh, com' on!" she tells him, calming down from laughter. „I was kidding. There is a secret."

„You're lying." He spat.

„I'm not."she tells him honestly. „I'll tell you. Stefan and Elena are leaving town."

„What?" he's even more confused now.

„They're planning a romantic getaway, to some lakehouse that belonged to her parents."

„Why are you telling me this? Why would I care about this?" he asked annoyingly.

„Because they are not planning on telling you."

„What? Why?" he asked slowly losing his temper with this stupid conversation.

„Because _you_ are going out of town this weekend too, and they see it as a perfect opportunity to skip town and spend some quality time together before the chaos hits us again."

Damon furrowed his brows. Are they planning on a trip now?

„And, plus, I would be left alone at the house, and Stefan seems to think you would go ballistic about it for some reason."

„Wow, wow, wow! You? Alone at my house? No freaking way! I leave you here by yourself, I would be coming back at Sunday to ashes left of the house. And I have to precious possessions to leave it just laying around with no supervising at all."

„I wonder what gave him that crazy idea?" she mumbles in her chin.

„No way. Not happening. I guess my trip is canceled. Oh, Stefan's gonna hear me when he comes home." He says putting his hands on his hips.

„Are you stupid? I told you they didn't want you to know." She tells him frowning.

He looks at her strangely.

„Then why did you tell this just now?"

„Because I need another favor." She says as a matter of fact.

He furrows his eyebrows, looking suspiciously the girl in front of him. A smile creeps on his lips.

„Ooooh! I get it!" he exclaims, taking a step closer to the witch, once again pointing his finger at her. „This wasn't about a secret or anything like that! You tricked me into going with you to get the grimoires, so you could milk your way for another thing I would do for you. You are a little weasel!" his eyes wide.

„Don't be so dramatic." She rolls her eyes at him.

„You know, you are really something." He says nodding his head at her and swinging that finger in front of her face. „You have that angel face on you all the time, but the truth is you are a devil. A devil in disguise." He takes one more step closer to her, but she backs up right away in frustration.

„Are you gonna stop and listen or what?"

„You are a dirty player, Ms. Bennett." He walks into her private space, looking down on her. „Very dirty player."

He leans down on her, glaring directly at her eyes. „Almost as good as I am."

He gives her a flirty smile. „I think I like that."

His eyes fall on her lips and a sexy smirk is covering his face. She breathes heavily as he licks his own lips and bits on them seductively. She takes a step back from him again, keeping her head down to avoid his penetrating look and trying to compose herself.

„Can I continue?" she asks, with her eyes looking straight.

„Oh, please do."

„Okay." She takes a deep breath and picks up her courage to look at his eyes again.

„Well, I've been trying to find a spell or something that can help me get my memories back. But, I don't seem to be on the right track. And, I remember Stefan told me you were the one who knew about the spell I did, before my „accident". So, maybe there is something you remember that can help me get on the right track."

„Okay..." Damon says slowly, a little unsure about her explanation.

„Look, Stefan and Elena obviously don't like the fact I've been practicing magic and they don't know I've been researching this specific spell I did. So, the best opportunity I have is if they are out of town. And I can't do it by myself. I need somebody who will tell me straight, without beating about the bush, how things are."

„And, you thought of me?" he asks surprisingly.

„Well, yeah. You are, sort of, the only one around who's been completely honest with me, no matter how awful or devastating the truth was."

„That is truth." He confirms. „Honesty is my best quality. Well, that and my great looks." She rolls her eyes at him. „So, how exactly would we do this?"

„Well, research,"she says. „I have the grimoires and with the big amount of literature you have in your library, I'm sure we would be able to find something."

He nods. „Okay. Wait, that means I'm supposed to really cancel my trip this weekend?"

„Yeah."

He looks disappointed.

„I don't like that."

„Do you really want to leave me all alone in your house?" Bonnie reminds him. „Especially, if they are planning on having Caroline staying with me?"

„You're right. Guess Myrtle Beach will have to wait. Hold on... Vampire Blondy is supposed to babysit you?"

„Yeah, they don't want me to be all alone. But, I already thought about that. I can just tell her there is no need for that. I'll just tell her I'm sick or something."

„You think your pretend sickness is going to get Blondie of your back for the weekend? You clearly don't know her at all."

„Well, what else I can do?"

„Don't worry about that." He dismisses it with a wave of his hand. „I'll take care of your babysitter."

„What will you do?" she asks confused.

„Leave everything to me." He winks at her. „We'll talk details another time."

He passed right by her to enter the house, but Bonnie stops him.

„Wait! One more thing." She tells him seriously when he turns to her frowning.

„What?"

„Before we begin with everything, I think we need to set some ground rules."

„Ground rules?" he repeats slowly.

„Yes." She takes a step closer, readjusting the heavy bag on her shoulder and looking him straight in the eyes.

„I don't want any innuendo jokes from you, suggestive remarks or double meaning hints. I know it's your thing to flirt with everything that walks, but I don't want it directed at me, anymore. And you have to stop with the 'I'm undressing you with my hot pretty eyes' look."

„My hot pretty eyes?" he asks with a laugh.

„Yes. It's distracting and we don't need that right now. There are bigger things to worry about and we should focus on them." She tells him seriously.

„I can't help if my eyes are hot and pretty all the time. It's a curse, really." He makes a scene of batting his eyelashes on her.

„Oh, shut up!" she tells him tiredly.

„What makes you think I'm flirting with you?" He smirks and wiggles his eyebrows on her.

„Look, it's understandable. I'm a girl and you're a guy. It's quite normal that we develop some sort of attraction towards each other." She says like it's the most normal thing in the world.

„So, are you saying...that, you like me?" he asks with a satisfying smile on his face.

She rolls her eyes again. At him.

„I'm saying it's bound to happen, between a girl like me and a guy like you and all of the situations and time we spend together, it's not surprising that some sexual tension is born out of it."

He watches her with a wide smile on his face, clearly enjoying himself and feeling proud like a peacock in his mind, but also a little confused. She is giving him this speech about sexual tension and he thinks, that somehow the roles have been reversed.

He's usually the one who admits that sort of thing first, surprising the other person with it, and this time, he's the one who's actually spending his time, trying to avoid the person and blame this all on some kind of curse. He's surprised as hell and he feels the sweat tingles inside his stomach like some teenage girl.

„So, you think I'm hot and you like me?" he asks her with curiosity, taking a step closer to her, once again throwing that seductive smirk on her and playing his fingers with the curls of her hair.

Bonnie's eyes dart to his hand movements, crossing her hands under her chest and looking at his hot blue eyes.

„Well, I think, you are an attractive guy." She tells him almost rhetorically.

„You have great physical qualities, like the eyes and the muscles, plus the whole cloud of mystery around you." she looks at his arms muscles and she even leans closer to him.

„You're the definition of tall, dark and handsome." She smiles at him and he flashes his white teeth at her. „It picks an interest in a girl."

She says with a breath stuck in her throat and he can hear her heart skip a beat. So, he moves closer to her face, watching her sexy pouty lips and just waiting to taste them. But, she backs up an inch and continues.

„But, you're also an ass," she says all of a sudden completely sober, with a strong voice, catching him off guard.

„...who does wrong things daily and has some serious superior-inferior issues with your personality,...you're a vampire," she stops in thinking a little,

„and you're in love with the girl who is suppose to be my best friend and your brother's girlfriend. So, in conclusion: No, I don't like you." she shakes her head strongly. „My standards go way higher than that."

She tells him and bypasses him on her way to the house, leaving him once again confused and lost.


	11. Chapter 11 - Roadtrip

**_Chapter 11 is here! I wanna thank you all for your reviews and followings, words can't describe how much they mean to me._**  


 ** _I have to warn you, pay attention to the timeline, or rather the days and the clock. It's kind of important to for this and especially for the next chapter. It's not that hard to keep track. I hope you like it. Enjoy!_**

* * *

Chapter 11 - Roadtrip

 _Friday 10:14 a.m._

 _Change of plans. I'll be at the house 3:15. Pack a bag._

He hits 'send' to deliver his cryptic text message to the witch. He smirks, lifting his drink to his lips, leaning his arms on the bar, waiting for her answer.

 _What change of plans? A bag for what?_

He smiles at her text respond. There actually is no change of plans. At least not his. He planned this on the day he agreed to be her partner in crime. He just loves screwing her over.

 _Bag. Trip. Weekend._

He knows nothing actually answers her questions, but he just likes it when he is driving this ship.

 _Explain._ She writes back.

 _Do it. Wait for further instructions._

She hates it when he bosses her around. And he knows it. He's imagining her reading the text, frowning, getting mad, and cursing him under her breath, while she writes him an angry reply.

But she doesn't write it this time. He shrugs it off, knowing he'll hear the end of it.

„Bourbon on rocks." He hears a voice from his right and greets his drinking buddy with a nod.

Man, he freaking loves Alaric. In a completely nongay way, of course. He is his buddy, and probably the only guy in Mystic Falls that has an alcohol tolerance high as Damon himself does.

„All right, I'm here." the teacher tells him „When are you hitting the road?"

Damon smiles. This guy is his ace in a sleeve, and he doesn't even know it. He feels kind of bad for doing this to him, but he has no other choice. Someone has to pay up, while he is stuck with a pretty annoying witch all weekend.

You see, when Bonnie informed him she is looking for a way to find out more about the spell she did, or rather to do a spell that could bring her memories back, an idea popped into his head.

The truth is he could spend the entire weekend closed up in the Salvatore mansion with her, trying to find an answer they probably wouldn't find. So, he thought of this, that could be the answer they were looking for.

He didn't actually have to cancel his trip this weekend, he could just bring Bonnie along with him. They make a small pit stop on the way and when they are done, they go to Myrtle Beach and have fun. It was a perfect plan.

The only problem was, Stefan was bent on having Caroline babysit Bonnie the whole weekend while he and Elena were away for a romantic getaway. Which meant something had to be done by that.

Anyway coincidentally, Alaric told him he was low on vervain this week, so he asked Damon to get him some more.

And ''coincidentally'', Damon just ran low on it, too.

All Damon and Bonnie had to do was to plant a seed in Stefan's ear, so he would get Ric to babysit the witch for the weekend.

Damon tried using stupid lines, like 'Caroline is so distracted these days, it's like she's not even walking the Earth', or 'Ric just got a new set of vampire killing devices, if I didn't know he got a dick between his legs, I'd call him Buffy' (that one earned a weird glance from his brother, but he was hammered that night he said it).

None of it really worked until Bonnie mastered her 'damsel in distress' act and told Stefan 'honestly, you know I like Caroline, but with everything that has been going on with the vampires and werewolves, I'd feel much better with a man keeping me safe'. Throw in the batting of the eyelashes, little mouth pouting, and breast pressing, (at least that's how Damon pictured it) Stefan was sold.

He informed Bonnie yesterday, Ric is going to take Caroline's place for the weekend, and the rest of the plan was set in the notion.

So, here Damon is, sitting next to the last puzzle piece in his master plan. He watches the other clueless guy as he sips his drink, not a worry in his mind, getting himself mentally ready for this week's last working day.

They sat for the next half an hour making small talk mostly or not talking at all.

„Well, time for me to go." Ric announces and gets up from his seat.

„Not so fast, buddy." Damon snidely says. His friend turns to look at him.

Damon turns to him, too, and looking him straight in the eyes, dilating his pupils says:

„Sit down and listen to what I say to you."

The man obliges with no question as Damon continues to talk.

„You're gonna go to school today, and do your job like a good little teacher that you are.

Then you are gonna go my house, and you're gonna send off Stefan and Elena to their trip, telling them I already left this morning, and assure them you will take good care of Bonnie.

Then, you're gonna lock yourself at the boarding house, and you're gonna get yourself drunk like shit, and stay like that for the next three days.

Whenever Stefan or Elena call, you're gonna tell them you are having a lot of fun and that everything is okay.

And if anybody comes, looking for Bonnie, you're gonna say she is sleeping in her room because she is very sick and you're gonna make sure nobody goes to check on her."

He looks at his friend again with a smile on his face. „Do we have an agreement?"

„I will do everything you told me to do." Ric says robotically.

„Good boy." He pats him on the shoulder.

* * *

 _Friday 3:38 p.m._

Hoooooonk!

This is the third time he's been honking for her to get out. He rolls his eyes every time he does it.

He's been sitting in his car for the last 20 minutes, waiting for her to get her bag from upstairs. He checked on Ric, gave him the last instructions and now he waiting on little Miss Sunshine to get her ass in the car.

She said she just had to pick up her damn bag from her room and she'll be down in 5. Multiply by another 5, she didn't say.

He checked the water in his car, he checked the oil, he checked the tires, the breaks, the removing rooftop, the ignition. He checked the whole damn car again and again because she was too busy talking on her phone.

He heard her talking to what it seemed like Caroline on the phone, two minutes after she left upstairs. The conversation ended 9 minutes later. She's been late for 23 minutes, so what the hell has she's been doing for the last 14 minutes, is what he would like to know.

And then finally the front door opens. She walks outside and he hears the door lock behind her. _Good old Ric_. He looks over at her and motions her to get in the car.

„Where do I put these?" she points at the bags in her hands.

„Toss them on the back seat."

She does as he tells her and she enters the car to sit on the passenger seat. She turns back and starts to sort the bags around.

She notices his angry face when she turns to look at him.

„What?" she asks him confused.

„I told you to pack a bag. You seriously packed three bags?" he says flatly.

„Is that a problem?" she asks frowning.

„Nope." He says quickly and turns the ignition on. The car starts and they leave the Salvatore property.

„So, on the risk of asking a question I 'm sure I'm gonna regret..." he says not moving his eyes from the road. „What do you have in three bags, that you couldn't get in one bag?"

„Well, it's called organized pack system." She tells his full of wisdom. His eyeballs throw her a look , while his head stays in place.

„I got a bag for my clothes, a bag for my shoes and a bag for the grimoires."

„You got a bag full of books?!" he asks her incredulously.

„Grimoires." She says slowly pronouncing the word. „And seeing as I still have no idea where we are going, I had to be prepared for every situation."

He rolls his eyes.

„Fine. We are going to Ellicott City." He doesn't mention Myrtle Beach to her yet because he wants to leave it for a surprise.

„Ellicott City?" she asks with eyes wide opened. „Isn't that in Maryland?"

„Yup." He says smugly.

„What is over there?"

„Got some old friends, that might be helpful with your situation." Pause. „But do you really need a separate bag for your shoes and your clothes?"

„Of course." She says and turns her body slightly to the side so she can look at him. He tosses her a quick glance and gets back watching the road.

„It's the first half of May. Statistically, there's a 19% chance for high 'summer like' air temperature, so I need light clothes. And about 8% chance to snow, so I had to pack at least one winter garment. And, being springtime, the best option is layered clothes. Do you have any idea how much clothes you need to get a layered outfit? And that's just without the fashion type prospect. I mean, I might need casual clothing if we're doing research if it's a physical activity I need sports clothing. And if we go somewhere fancy, I will need a formal outfit. And shoes fall right in all categories above."

„What is this? Caroline Forbes 101?" Damon asks irritably.

She turns back on her seat and shrugs.

„I might've taken some tips while she was sorting out Elena's travel bag."

He smiles and shakes his head.

* * *

„What about the moonstone?" she asks 15 minutes after they hit the free road. Her grimoire is on her lap, and she's been reading it since they were on the move.

„What about it?" he asks casually.

„Well, the moonstone is used as a binder of the ingredients before they are all 'transferred' to Klaus. It surprises the magical activity that he needs to break the curse. So, technically if there are no magical properties, there might not be a sacrifice."

„You already tried to dispell it. It didn't work."

She sighs frustratedly.

„I honestly don't know what else is there to do. I mean, we can use the moonstone, we can't have any potion in Elena, and...we can't do anything."

„I suggested we get vampire blood in her system the next full moon." He shrugs.

She looks over at him with raised eyebrows.

„She didn't take it well." He sort of whispers.

Bonnie smiles, seeing he is making fun of it.

„Yeah, well, it's probably a bad idea. Klaus would have killed you the last time you did that."

„Doesn't matter." He says frowning. „Just as long as she's safe."

Bonnie turns her head back to Damon. There is no smile, no suggestive tone, or any sign he joking. She presses her lips together in a tight sympathetic smile. He looks at her with a questioning face, as she turns her head straight ahead. She takes a deep breath in.

„Well, that must suck." She says and waits for him to comment, but he doesn't, so she pushes more. „To feel that way about somebody who is not available to you. To care so deeply about a person who happens to be your brother's girlfriend."

„Shut up." He says quietly.

„Do you love her?" she asks excitedly turning her head to him. He just frowns but refuses to answer her. „Have you told her how you feel about her?"

„Shut up!" he yells this time. He looks at her with a disturbing threatening look.

„Why?" she surprises him. „Isn't it a well-known fact that you have feelings for her?"

He opens his mouth to speak but nothing comes out. He doesn't actually know what to say, and he is surprised that Bonnie is being so concerned about it.

„You know nothing." He tells her coldly.

She shrugs.

„I just know that you would feel a lot better if you would be honest about your emotions."

She pauses for a few moments.

„When I was nine years old, I broke my Grams vase, which if you knew my Grams was a big deal. The vase was some family heirloom and it was supposed to be passed on every second generation. Anyway, I was playing ball inside of her house, even though she told a hundred times not to. The vase broke, and I remember Grams actually cried because of it. I felt horribly guilty. I mean, I didn't really think it would help if I told her I broke it because nothing could've been done about it. The vase was gone. But, after a couple of days, I confessed and I actually felt a lot better."

He sighs in frustration.

„Maybe you would feel better if you would be honest, too. Maybe that way, you wouldn't be judged for every wrong move you do. Because she would understand that you're doing it for her own good."

„Enouuuuugh!" he stretches the word out. He looks at her with wide eyes, „You know what? We gotta set some ground rules for this road trip." He says frustratingly, looking at her.

„Ground rules? I already set those." She tells him sassily.

„Alright. You set yours, now it's time for mine. Rule number one." He makes a show listing the numbers on his hand. „No talking about my personal issues or feelings."

„Rule number two. No more giving smart pieces of advice. And rule number three." He sighs and goes on tiredly. „No more talking about clothes and shoes and bags."

She looks at him for a moment like he just grown two heads. Then she shrugs and goes on reading the grimoire. Neither one of them talk for a couple of minutes, and there's a grave silence inside the car.

She finds a few interesting spells in the grimoire and reads them under her breath. All of the sudden, Damon loses the control of his car, as he sways on the other side of the road. It's like the car has his own will.

She looks up and screams for a moment when he holds the steering wheel strongly and gets the car back on track.

He leans further to get a stronger grip on it and looks over at her, to see her sheepish expression on her face.

He looks down on the grimoire she is holding firmly in shock and grabs the book to toss it on the back seat.

„Rule number four." He says lowly. „No testing of the spells or reading magic books in the car."

She doesn't say anything and they continue to drive in silence. A couple of minutes later, she starts tapping her fingers at the hand holder on her side of the door. She looks out of the window between the trees and the sky and hums a melody quietly.

He rolls his eyes because the tapping is getting on his nerves, but he doesn't say anything, thinking maybe if he acts like it doesn't bother him, she'll stop. The tapping and the humming go on for more than he can take it when she hurriedly turns her head in his direction and asks:

„You wanna play a game? We can play 20 questions?" she asks with a smile on her face.

„Rule number five." He says firmly.

„No games in the car?" she asks disappointedly.

He turns to look at her. „No games in the car." He repeats.

She stays quiet for a couple of minutes when she leans back to get her bag from the back seat. She opens the bag and starts to toss around the bag contents. He looks curiously at her and sees her grabbing some CDs out of the bag.

She takes a CD and sticks it in a CD opener on his radio. She presses the button _play_ and the moment she does, he presses _stop_.

„What do you think you're doing?" he asks her.

She looks over at him with wide eyes and then diverts her look straight ahead. She holds lips pressed tightly, and crosses her arms over her chest. She is about to boil with fury.

She can't do anything around him. He is acting like he is her father or even worse. Like some kind of master she needs to listen. It's frustrating and annoying.

He throws her a look and she can feel it. It makes her angrier, as he leans forward to see her face expression. She bites the inside of her cheek to stop herself from bursting like a bomb.

He leans back on the seat and continues to concentrate on the driving.

„What crawled up your ass and died?!" she asks him maliciously.

„What?" he's confused.

„You're acting like an old man." She looks at him. „Seriously, this drive lasts for a little more than 3 hours."

She checks her watch.

„It's been like half an hour since we left the house. What the hell do you suggest we do for the next two and a half hours?"

She turns her body in his direction and shows her hand to him, sizing a small space between her thumb and point finger. „Because I am this close to setting you on fire."

He looks at her frowning. She is mad and he knows he is reaching her limit.

„You want music?" he asks as nicely as he can.

„That would be nice, yes." She says.

He looks at her for a moment and he can see she is not going down without a fight. He nods his head and presses _play_ on the radio. The music starts playing and she relaxes her body, turning straight forward and getting comfortable in her seat.

They drive as the song plays and once it ends he has an itching he has to say something to ease the tension.

„There better not be some Justin Beiber or One direction songs. My car has to have standards."

She exhales but refuses to look at him. She hesitates for a moment but answers him anyway.

„Don't worry. It's a mix CD I got from your kitchen collection."

„You stole my CDs?"

„I borrowed them."

She looks over at him and sees him watching her with a smirk on his face. She plays stone cold, but he winks at her and she turns her head to the window. She hopes he doesn't catch her smile. He does, so he smiles too.

 _This is going to be one hell of a trip._ It's what they both think at the same time.

* * *

They make a stop at the gas station somewhere half way to Maryland. Damon fills the car, while Bonnie picks up some snacks and beverages for the trip.

21, 60 $ is the price the cashier tells her. She hands him the money and sees him smiling at her. She smiles back. He doesn't say anything but the flirty looks and smiles are saying more than words. She takes the stuff of the counter and walks out of the store.

Damon is already sitting in his car, waiting for her. She enters and sits, tossing the stuff she bought on the back seat and biting her lip to keep it from smiling. She ignores the vampire sitting next to her and raises her look to the guy in the store.

He's looking out of the window, smiling slightly as he waves to her. The smile on her face grows wider and she feels her cheeks are blushing. The huffing from the seat next to her brings her back in space.

She turns her head to the side and looks at the vampire sitting in the driver's seat. He snorts and laughs at her.

„Really?" he asks her frowning.

„What?" she acts confused.

He just shakes his head as he turns the ignition on and drives them off.

They're on the freeway and Damon just can't stop himself from not commenting anymore.

„So, you scowl me for flirting with every living being, but when you flirt everything is fine?"

„I'm not flirting with you." she says in all seriousness.

„Not with me, with the ugly guy at the gas station."

„He wasn't ugly."

„He was, but that's not the issue right now. You don't want any flirting because it is distracting and then you go and flirt with literally the first guy on the road. Talk about double standards." he says frustrated.

„Well, actually, I didn't want _you_ flirting with _me_ , I don't have a problem with other flirting happening around."

„So, I can actually make a move on other women, just not on you."

„Exactly." She nods strongly.

He frowns and looks at her seriously. „You would not have any problem with me, hanging around with some other chicks, just as long as it's not you?"

„Correct."

„Hmmm." He nods. „So, why does my flirting have so much effect on you?"

„It doesn't have an effect on me. I just don't like it."

„Why? I usually do it very good." He smirks.

She shakes her head and sighs tiredly.

„I am getting tired of this conversation. Can we change the subject?"

„Oh, com' on. I'm curious about this." He says, getting really interested in it. „You said you don't want my flirtation directed at you anymore because it's too distracting. Your words, not mine. Which means that it has to be doing something to you if it has the ability to distract you."

He looks at her curiously, with a smile on his face.

„Oh, God." Bonnie sighs.

„And you know what?" he continues, „I think that if my flirty aspect on you has you distracted than my flirtation and any kind of contact with any other female is going to have you distracted, too."

„I assure you, it won't." She comments with absolute certainty.

He rolls his eyes.

„Why don't you just admit what is it about me that makes you tick in a certain way?" he raises his eyebrows at her when she looks at him frowning. „I don't understand why don't you just admit it."

She stays silent for a couple of moments, rethinking about his words.

„You know what I don't get? If the reason why you're looking so passionately for my approval, is the fact that you want your ego to bursting out with your manly pride or if you actually want me to bruise it, so it would make you even more insecure and weak than you already are?"

Now he's silent. He looks straight ahead of him, not letting his eyes find hers. She gets him every time. He pushes and pushes the issue and she just burns him every time, so casually. Like it's that easy to her.

He hates it and strangely enough, he does it every time. It's almost like he wants to test the limit, or maybe she just right. Maybe he simply enjoys getting his ego bruised.

„Let's just leave this conversation alone." Bonnie interrupts his thoughts. „I think we can both agree that this trip or anything else that happens on it, can't change the situation between us. We're just convenient allies and nothing more."

She closes the subject with absolute certainty and even he has to agree that it makes sense. There might be some tension or attraction, but nothing more. She's determined to keep this strictly business and as much as he likes to push the tease, he knows it's not going anywhere.

* * *

 _Friday 7:06 p.m._

It was around 7 pm when they entered Ellicott City. Bonnie watched the small friendly town and asked herself what exactly are they doing here. She's never been to Maryland, and so far it didn't seem very different from Mystic Falls. Except for all the antic shops. It seemed they had one at every corner.

Damon turned the car on the right and they were driving up a climb. It seemed as they were leaving the busy crowded little center and set out to a more peaceful part of town.

They stopped in front of a beautiful two - story white house. There was a nice porch with white picket fence and a tall, wide oak tree in the front yard.

Damon exits the car, and Bonnie follows his moves. He walks in front of her as she takes in their surroundings. The house is on the border of the town, with a just a few more houses around. It's quiet and peaceful here. Bonnie loves it.

Damon takes the three stairs on the porch and gets closer to the door. Bonnie speeds out to come closer to him.

He knocks the door with a polite three sound beat and folds his hands in front of him, with his head looking at the porch floor.

„Who lives here?" it's the first thing Bonnie asks since they arrived at the city.

„An old friend of mine." He answers quietly.

The door opens and reveals a tall beautiful woman in her mid-twenties with a vibrant reddish brown hair that falls down her shoulders and brown eyes. She has a dark floral dress and a beige cardigan on, paired up with flats in the same color of the cardigan.

She looks over at Damon, who raises his look to her and tightly smiles to the woman.

He's just about to say something when she takes a step back and slams the door in his face.

He stands frozen in his place and tilts his head on the side, while Bonnie raises her eyebrows in surprise.

„I thought you said she's 'a friend'?" Bonnie tells him questioningly.

He ignores her comment and knocks on the door again. After a couple of moments, the same women opens with an angry expression on her face. She takes one look at Damon again and is about to close the door again, but Damon stops her.

„Sam! Wait!" he yells and extends his hand in front of him.

The women stops closing the door and looks at him curiously. They both stay silent for a long time just looking at each other. Bonnie stands beside them watching them curiously.

„You got a lot of nerve knocking at my door, Damon Salvatore." The women finally speaks. She has slight, almost imperceptible southern accent.

He shrugs with a sheepish yet saucy expression.

„What do you have to say for yourself?" she asks letting the door open wider and crossing her arms over her chest.

„What is there to say, Sam?" he tells her smugly. „You look good."

She is clearly irritated by his behavior and she grabs the door ready to slam them in his face again.

„Get off my porch!" she yells threateningly.

„Ohh, com' on Sam!" he screams. „What do you want me to say?"

She opens the door again and takes a step further, boldly stepping out of her house, when Damon surprisingly takes a small, almost unnoticeable step back.

„How about an apology?" she asks him angrily.

He rolls his eyes.

„Now... why would you want to hear something you know that wouldn't be sincere?"

The woman's eyes wide out a little more and her mouth fall a little at the vampire's words.

„How dare you?" she asks him. „You come here at my house, clearly in need of something, and you think everything is forgiven? Don't you remember the last time we saw each other?"

The vampire doesn't speak, so the woman continues.

„Because I sure as hell haven't forgotten about it!" she tells him madly.

„Oh cut the stupid ''you hurt me'' act!" Damon yells boldly. „You forgot all about it! If you didn't, you wouldn't let me stay on your porch for this long. I would be plastered on that tree, on your first glance!" He tells her motioning his hand around him.

„I haven't forgotten about it." The woman says sternly, but her voice is softer and warmer than before.

„But you forgave!" Damon says a bit passionately and smirks at her. „You just fell bad that you're glad to see me when the last time you were furious."

„Did you forgave yourself?"

He doesn't answer her, but he doesn't need to. The woman's expression changes and warms up a little.

She shakes her head, smiles and crosses her arms over her chest again.

„Damn you!" she tells him and he smiles smugly.

They stand like that for a while, when the women diverts her look on Bonnie for the first time and takes a deep breath in.

„Aren't you gonna interduce me to your friend?"

He turns around and extends his hand to Bonnie, motioning to her to come closer. The girl does it slowly.

„Well, Bon Bon, I want you meet Samantha Brown." Bonnie shakes Samantha's hand who smiles at her nicely. „Sam Sam, meet Bon Bon aka Bonnie Bennett."

Sam stops shaking Bonnie's hand but doesn't let go. Her smile freezes on her face, and her eyes wide a bit. She looks back at Damon.

„You got yourself Bennett witch?" she asks him incredulously.

„More or less." He shrugs.

Sam looks back at Bonnie and smiles warmer to her.

„It's nice to meet you, Bonnie." She tells her and Bonnie feels an electricity spaz in her hand going further to her body.

She squints and jumps a little and looks at their still-joined hands and then back at the women's eyes.

„You felt that?" she asks her sweetly. Bonnie nods and Sam's smile grows wider.

„You're a witch?" Bonnie asks her taking a step closer to the tall women.

The women lets go of her hand, but her smile doesn't drift away. She presses her point finger to her mouth.

„Shhhhhhh." She laughs. „Don't tell anyone." She whispers.

The women seem very nice and Bonnie is glad to meet her. She smiles at her as she hears the wind bells clink at the melodic sound, but there's no wind around them.

Damon looks around the house, to inspect if it changed last time he was here. He breathes in the familiar scent of mint and lemon. Good old Sam.

He steps down the porch and inspects the large oak tree and roses planted to the side of the house. He's not really interested in gardening, but he wanted to give Bonnie and Sam a chance to get to know each other a little better.

„How long have you been practicing?" Bonnie asks the tall witch as they sat on the porch outdoor furniture.

Sam laughs at her question.

„Oh, honey. Much longer than you think. Last time I saw Damon I was 25 years old." Bonnie frowns. „That was in early 90's." She laughs.

„How old are you now?" Bonnie asks curiously.

„About 27."

Bonnie's eyes go wider.

„But... how?"

The women laughs good naturally.

„Doll, I'm a witch. If I can make a vampire kiss his own toes or bring life back to a cat, I can freeze my youth for a while."

„You froze... your youth?" Bonnie repeats slowly.

Sam shrugs. „Something like that. But, I'll tell you more about that another time." She dismisses the subject.

She looks at Bonnie, who is sitting on the porch's bench to her left, while she is sitting on an armchair. She observes her closely and then raises her hand to stroke Bonnie's thick dark hair, and lifts a few strands of her face to see her more clearly.

„You're very pretty." She tells her „Like a little doll."

Bonnie smiles shyly.

Sam reaches for her hand and holds it. Her smile drifts slowly, looking down at her hands and she scrunches her eyebrows.

„But, you're troubled." She raises to look at the young witch. „Your emotions are closed up and you're confused. You seem lost in a world you don't know nothing about and you're scared that there are bigger things than you."

„D- Did-..." Bonnie stutters. „You get that from just touching me?"

„No." the other witch shakes her head slowly with a sympathetic smile on her face. „I get that from the look in your eyes."

Bonnie lowers her head and looks at the porch floor.

„You clearly have a problem with your magic and Damon wants me to help you with it."

„Something like that. He didn't actually tell me anything about you or what are we doing here."

Sam nods. „Well, he didn't tell me a thing about you, either. Damon can be pretty secretive. Especially with things that matter to him."

The woman raises her eyebrows and throws a slight smile to Bonnie.

„Oh, don't get the wrong idea about..." Bonnie shakes her head. „No. Not a chance."

Sam smiles knowingly. „I am not insinuating anything, darling. But, Damon has a fascination with witches and in my experience it goes both ways. We can either love him or hate him."

„Which one stands for you?"

„Depends on the day." The both laughs sincerely.

„So, what's the verdict?" Damon interrupts them and comes closer to the witches. „You'll help us?" he directs the question to Sam.

She stands up from the chair and looks him in the eye.

„I'll help Bonnie."

He shakes his head and smirks at her.

„Tomorow." She tells him and turns around to walk back in her house.

„Tomorow?" Damon follows her. „No, Sam. I brought her to you so you can help her now. Com'on, you do this and we leave straight away."

The women faces him.

„Sorry, Damon. I can't do anything now. The sun is already gone and I have plans for tonight." She smiles and shrugs. She plays as if she is sorry, but he knows she's not. „You're gonna have to stay the night in town."

„You know I can't do that, Sam." He tells her.

„There's a cute little motel at the Green street. You can sleep there, and you bring her here tomorrow around noon."

„Sam!" Damon yells. „I can't stay here. Not with her." He tells her quietly, but Bonnie hears his words.

„Oh, get over it, Damon." Sam tells him. „He's not mad at you anymore. As a matter of fact..." she says and takes a step closer to Damon. „I'm going to The Sapphire tonight. He's arranging a big birthday party for Alice, who's back in town. Maybe you two can swing by and say 'hi' to them. I'm sure he'd love to patch up after all this time."

She looks at Bonnie and smiles.

„Bonnie, try to talk him into a party tonight. The Sapphire is a _must_ when you come in Ellicott City." She winks and with a last glance at Damon she disappears in the house.

* * *

 _Saturday , 19:47 p. m._

„Damon? I wanna do it." She says looking straight ahead of her.

He turns his head to her, searching for the meaning of her words. She turns her head to him and raises her eyes to him. His eyes read the meaning behind her look and he nods almost invisibly.

„You're sure?" he asks her.

She swallows hard. „Yes. Yes, I'm sure."

„Okay." He says and turns him head straight, pushing the keys in the ignition and turning it on.

„What are you doing?" she asks him furrowing her brows.

He looks at her again. „What do you think? We gotta get ourselves checked in a room, motel or something."

„Are you crazy?"

„Well, we're not doing it here." He says offended looking around himself.

„Yes, we are. We can't go to a hotel. The whole town is on the search for us. Now, com' on! Straighten up and let's do it!"

She turns the ignition off and pulls the keys out. She tosses them on the cupboard, and opens the passenger door, giving him one last look.

„You coming?"

She exits the car and stands in front of it when she sees he is still sitting in the car with a displeased look on his face. She walks over to him and opens the door to him.

„Damon. Get out of the car. We don't have all night."

He sits for a moment and then stands up. She closes the door of the car, while he stands to look at the ground. She calls his name, but he doesn't look at her.

„What's wrong?" she asks him.

„I'm not doing it here." He says determinedly.

She looks around. „Com' on. It's not that bad."

„Not that bad?" he finally raises his look to her. „It's a dark little alley in a shithole of a town! It's damp and filthy and smells of dried urine. And even fresh urine." He makes a face of disgust.

„Oh, please. Don't tell you got standards?" she asks him cynically.

„Hey! I do have standards. Besides, I'm not just a guy you picked up on the street. We got history, you and me." He says pointing between them.

„Yeah, a history I don't remember." She says acidly.

„Yeah, well I do! And I say we're not doing it here!" he yells.

She rolls her eyes.

„Why the hell not?!" she screams, getting sick of his attitude.

„Because!" he stops, „I thought, if and when we do it..." he rolls is eyes, and can't believe he is the one saying this. „it would be...you know..." he motions his head, trying to explain not saying it.

Bonnie frowns. „What?" she pauses „Special?" she asks quietly.

„No!" he screams. He looks for a moment but then diverts it to the floor. „Well, yeah, special, I guess... and meaningful."

Bonnie raises her brows. „Meaningful? You're a vampire!" she screams „What do you care?"

„Hey, I deserve to be treated better!" he yells pointing at himself, „I may be a vampire, but I still have feelings!" he screams throwing his arms in the air. „And doing this! ... here..." with every word he gets quieter. „in a smelly place like this... makes me fell cheap."

„Ooh, give me a break!" Bonnie yells and laughs. „You're acting like a child! No!" She points a finger on him. „Like a virgin! You're acting like some teenage virgin! What do you want? You want special?!" she throws her hand around her. „What? You want candles lighted around? A freaking Persian rug? Maybe some wine?"

„Hey! No need to be mean about it!"

She rolls her eyes again and sighs, „You know what? Forget it! Just forget it!" she says and turns to get back on her side of the car.


	12. Chapter 12 - Roadtrip Part 2

Chapter 12 - Roadtrip Part 2

 _Friday, 10:23 p.m._

They booked a two - bedroom at the motel where Sam suggested. The drive from her house was a quiet one.

Bonnie went in the shower the moment they stepped in the room. It was a relief to get herself all cleaned up.

Now, she's sitting on the bed, brushing her damp hair, dressed in her comfy gray sweatpants and a white t-shirt. Damon is sprawled at bed beside her, holding the remote and flipping through the TV channels.

„I'm bored." Bonnie sighs.

„Great." Damon says not moving a muscle, switching the channels.

She looks over at him.

„I'm serious. I wanna do something." she whines. „Something fun."

„Read the grimoires." He suggests.

„I already did that." She tells him.

„Then watch TV with me."

„You're just flipping the channels." She says standing up from the bed and setting her brush on the bedside table, sending him a frustrated look.

„We can find something to watch. I can compromise."

„Daaamon!" she stretches his name in frustration, making him finally look at her. „I don't want to watch TV! I wanna do something new, fun!" she says with her hands flying around, „We're in a new town, where I haven't been yet. Can't we do some sightseeing?"

„Sorry to burst your bubble, but Ellicott City doesn't have much sightseeing places. Plus it's the middle of the night." he shakes his head as if her suggestion is the dumbest thing he heard.

„It's 10:30." she tells him with her eyes wide.

„Exactly. Just half an hour and its bedtime for you, young lady." He tells her in a father like tone, with his point finger teasing her limits.

She sticks her tongue out to him and he smirks at her adorable frustration. She pauses for a while, rethinking something and then smiles with a new idea at her mind.

„Then...we could go to _The_ -"

„We're not going to _The Sapphire_." he cuts her off, practically reading her mind before she could say it out loud.

„But why not?" she whines again.

He exhales deeply and rolls his eyes.

„Because I said so." He says definitively.

Bonnie sighs in frustration and goes to sit on the bed again. She crosses her arms under her chest and leaves her legs dangling from the bed.

„What is _The Sapphire_ anyway?" she asks in a bored tone.

„A well known night club in town." He answers shortly.

She looks at the TV when he turns some animal documentary on and picks the volume up a little. Clear sign he doesn't want to have this conversation with her right now. She settles and keeps quiet as they watch TV for a few minutes in silence.

„So what's the deal with you and Sam?" she asks him finally.

He doesn't speak or move and it looks like he is ignoring her.

„Did you two ever...?" she doesn't finish the question.

He looks over at her and smirks again. She's surprised his face doesn't stay frozen like that.

„Well, she's a woman. I'm a man." He says and he raises his eyebrows and gives her a knowing look.

She diverts her look to her hands folded in her lap and swallows hard.

He smiles and looks back at the TV.

„I'm kidding." He says and she looks back at him. „Nothing ever happened. I'm not her type." He looks back at her eyes. „But you might be." He jokes.

Bonnie's eyes wide again and her mouth drops a bit.

„Ou-h! She's a...? Really?" she says shockingly.

„Mhmm." Damon nods. „You interested?" he asks her smugly.

Her eyes burst out of their sockets as he throws her a flirty smile.

„No!" she screams, but he can see a smile creeping behind her lips. „I- I like guys!"

„Why so judgy?" he asks her.

„I'm not _judgy_!" he smiles how she pronounces that word. „I'm just saying... I'm into guys. I don't have anything against being gay. I'm just surprised."

„Oh, relax!" he tells her and goes back to watching TV.

She exhales and leans on the headboard of the bed and crosses her hands over her chest again.

„So.. you still haven't told me what's the deal between you two?" she reminds him.

„Nothing to tell." He cuts her off shortly.

They sit in silence again. Bonnie knows he is not a sharing kind of guy, especially not with her, but she just can't help her curiosity.

„Does this thing with Sam have anything to do with _The Sapphire_?"

„What's with all the questions?" he asks her tiredly.

„I told you! I'm bored!" She yells at him.

He looks at her, letting his eyes stay on her for a while, sighs deeply and then stands up from the bed. He walks over to the table under the window and throws the lift cap of the bourbon bottle. Lucky for him that he brought it with them. He pours the liquid into the paper cup and drinks it in one swallow.

„Why can't we go out?" Bonnie asks him again from her spot on the bed.

He turns around and looks at her for a moment not saying anything. She doesn't speak either and he can see her lips pouting like a little girl.

He looks at her shiny half damp hair and he can fell the smell her pineapple scent shampoo drifting from her. His eyes follow the line of her neck and his look falls on her perky breasts safely cupped in a pink bra and covered with a white t-shirt.

He diverts his eyes quickly when he notices her looking at him strangely. He turns his back on her again and pours himself another cup.

He hears her huff for the hundred time since they arrived at the motel and middle through his sip he decides to please her request.

„Fine. We'll go." He says, not moving from his stand.

She straightens up and her eyes glimmer in hope.

„Really?" she asks quietly.

He turns to face her again and nods. She smiles widely and her eyes shine like two bright stars.

„But only if we leave in 10 minutes." He says lifting a finger in command.

„Yes!" she screams and jumps off the bed. „Yes! Yes! Yes! 10 minutes! And not a second longer!" she promises smiling and runs of to her bags near the door, to find what to wear. She takes some items with her and disappears in the bathroom.

* * *

15 minutes later they are driving in the car on their way to the club. Damon dressed in dark jeans, white t-shirt, and his leather jacket.

The radio is playing when Marvin Gaye's Sexual Healing starts and the girl next to him turns the volume up.

Bonnie is on the passenger seat, happily humming along the radio and swaying to the music while applying her makeup. She didn't want to do it at the motel, not to test Damon's limits, so she decided to finish in the car.

Damon stops the car at the traffic light and looks over at Bonnie, who's applying her lip gloss on her mouth. He scans through her outfit and wonders why did he let her go out in it.

She's wearing a black and green lace mini dress with sleeves and thigh-high black boots.

Even though it's a perfectly polite and nice outfit, she looks too nice in it. Like a tasty hard candy that he would want to suck on all night long.

His head tilts to the side as he observes her body and imagines what it would be like to lick her up head to toe. If she would protest against and play hard to get or if she would be putty in his arms, giving him the liberty to do whatever he wants. He wonders if her skin would taste as sweet and hard like a candy if he would bite into it.

His eyes fall on the exposed skin of her thighs and he thinks how rough he would grab them, leaving his hand print on it, so nobody else would even think of touching her.

He grunts low in the back of his throat and Bonnie diverts her eyes to him in surprise.

„Damon?" she calls for him and his eyes fall on her heart shaped glossy mouth, losing himself again for a moment.

She looks over at him confused and points behind herself on the traffic light with the tube of lip gloss in her hand.

„It's green. It means 'go'."

His eyes scan the green color on her dress and for a moment he thinks this is it.

 _Oh, I'll go alright._

This is where he loses it. This is where he breaks the rules and goes for it no matter what.

Unfortunately, the honking and the yelling sets him back in reality. He blinks a couple of times, looking in the rear mirror the crowd of lined up cars behind them. He hurriedly presses his foot on the pedal and speeds up the street, opening the side window wide and letting the cold night wind to set him straight.

 _Friday 11:01 p.m._

The Sapphire is located a little out of town, on the free road, about 15 minutes outside Ellicott City.

They get out of the car and walk on the street to get inside the club. There's a big sign _The Sapphire_ in neon pink lights. The building looks like a big storage that has heavy metal doors.

They enter the club and Bonnie gasps in enthusiasm. There's a big DJ station and girls dancing on the stage. There's a big spacious dance floor that's crowded with people dancing. The bar is on the opposite side of the entrance and it is long almost as the entire wall of the club. There's an upstairs floor with the booths for a more private party, with a few staircases leading up.

Damon takes Bonnie by her arm and leads her to the bar. There are people on their way dancing and grinding beside them. _Stromae - Alors on dance_ is bursting of the speakers and Bonnie finds herself dancing to the rhythm on her way to the bar.

They find an empty seat next to the bar and Damon motions her to sit. He stands beside her, as the bartender makes his way to them.

„What do you want to drink?" Damon asks her before the bartender arrives.

She thinks for a moment, and then yells „Beer!"

„One bourbon, neat!" he yells over the music, leaning to the bartender, „And a ginger ale!"

Bonnie looks at him with a questioning face.

„I'm not getting you a beer!" he tells her as a matter of factly „I don't support underage drinking!"

„I'm 18 since March 13th this year, you idiot!" she yells angrily.

He looks a little confused but then shrugs. When did she turn 18, he has no idea. Maybe even better if she doesn't drink. He doesn't want her to drink her way under the table and some idiot guy taking advantage of her. Unless he is that idiot guy.

The bartender hands them the drink and Damon swallows his in one breath. Bonnie sips on her ginger ale, even though she's not happy about it.

Damon sets the empty glass back on the bar and looks around the club. He leans to Bonne closer, so she can hear him better.

„I gotta go take care of something! I'll be right back!"

„Where are you going? Are you seriously gonna leave me alone? Damon, we just came here!" she tells him disappointedly.

„Just stay here, don't talk to anyone and don't accept anyone's drink! You got that?"

She rolls her eyes as he leaves.

He makes his way to the big door that are on the side of the bar. There's a big fat black guard on the door in a suit and black shades on his face.

Damon goes straight to the door, but the guy stops him with an extended palm in front of him.

„Only employees allowed!" he tells him.

Damon smirks. Of course, this guy would have guards.

„I'm an old friend of your boss!"

„You have an appointment?"

„What? I don't need an appointment! I just got into town!"

„Sorry! No appointement, no entrance!"

Another man gets out of the door just when Damon wanted to strike the guy.

„Problem?" he asks in a British accent. He has sandy blond hair and green eyes. He's dressed in a suit as well. He reminds him a little of his brother, except this guy is much older and shorter than Stefan.

„This guy says he needs the boss!" the fat guard say.

„Do you have an appointment?" he directs the question to Damon.

He rolls his eyes. What is with these guys and appointments? He's not asking for a freaking dentist!

„NO!" he yells. „Just tell your boss Damon Salvatore is here to see him!"

„Damon Salvatore?" the British guy asks.

Damon nods.

The man looks at him and motions his head to him.

„Follow me!"

They enter the long hallway on which end are the staircases. They take the stairs and stand in front of a large double door. The man turns to Damon and tells him to wait here.

He disapears behind the door, as Damon looks around. Everything is so fancy. The wallpapers are in a maroon color with white small dots on it, and the floor is covered in a shade darker color.

After a couple of minutes, the door open and Damon sees the same _Stefan a like_ getting out with two big guys. They are both taller than Damon and visibly stronger. He stiffens as he sees them coming right at him.

The British man stands and nods to the whakers and Damon is just about to speed out of there, when one of them forestalls him.

He grabs Damon by the shoulder with one hand and bangs his face with another. Damon grabs his face in pain and the guy turns him and grabs him by the elbows. The other guy starts punching his stomach, repeatedly.

He's about to puke when the British guy tells them to stop and they do as they're told.

They held Damon to stand straight and he thinks he can hear the words coming out of the short guy's mouth.

„Mr. Finch will see you now."

The two men lead him to the door and shove him inside. He lands down on his face.

He hears laughter and doesn't need to guess who's it is. He riases his look and stands up from the floor to look at the face he hasn't seen in over 15 years.

„Damon Salvatore!" the man greets him.

Damon raises his right hand and rubbs it across his beaten cheek.

„David Finch." He greets the man.

David is a man in his forties, with short grayish black hair and blue eyes. He has a dark grey suit and a dark blue tie on. He's wearing an evil smile on his face, and his hands are wide spread.

„How was the welcomed comity? I hope the weren't too easy on you? They are rather new." He tells him jokingly.

Damon shrugs. „Don't worry about it."

The man laughs and makes his way to Damon. He looks him straight in the eye maliciously and his laughter drops from his face.

„I haven't seen you in 17 years. You know I looked all over for you, but never could catch you. You were always too fast for my men."

„Maybe you should buy them better shoes." Damon tells him sarcastically.

The man laughs. „HA HA HA! Oh, you!" He points his finger to him. „Always were a comedian!"

Damon shrugs. David passes Damon and goes over the guy that lead Damon upstairs. He whispers him something, but Damon doesn't hear what. His ears are still drumming from the kicks. The man steps out of the room.

David walks back to Damon and looks him in the eyes.

„How long do you plan on staying it town, Damon?"

„I should be leaving tomorrow."

„Tomorrow already?" the man asks him curiously. He says and walks over to the big glass window from which he has a view of the entire club.

„Oh, I'm afraid I can't let you do that, Damon! We got some unfinished business, you and me!" he turns to face him.

Damon stays silent for a few minutes.

„We could sort them out next time I'm in town. I'm really busy at the moment."

David turns to the glass and looked at the club downstairs.

„Bussy with that pretty little witch you came with?"

Damon's eyes wide. He can't talk for the moment. David motions him to walk closer to him, which he does. He stands right next to him and follows David's eyes. They are on Bonnie, who's still sitting at the bar, and sipping her ginger ale, jiggling her legs in the rhythm of the music.

„She is very pretty." He says tossing a quick glance at Damon, then back at Bonnie.

„A friend of yours?"

„Friend of a friend. Don't know her that well." Damon says quickly. He's afraid that David wouldn't go all vengeful on her, because of him.

David nods, but an evil smile dances on his lips.

„I would gladly love to meet her."

„Ah, csss!" Damon mumbles. „She's really shy."

„And rather hateful to vampiers." David tells him. „All Bennett witches are. Which is surprising she is accompanied by you."

„I'm just doing her a favor. I'm telling you I don't even know her that well!"

„Then you shouldn't care what happens to her, right?" David asks him lowly getting in his face.

Damon watches the man in front of him for a long time, not saying a word.

„Look, David. Whatever happened with us... it's just between us. We shouldn't involve the people that have nothing to do with it. If you got a bone you need to pick up with me, do it. Bonnie has nothing to do with this."

The man laughs maliciously.

„Yeah... you know, that's what I thought, too. About Mel." He's stone serious now and Damon diverts his look to the floor. „My business had nothing to do with her. And yet, look how that turned out."

Damon looks him in the eye again.

„About Mel-"

„Don't you dare say her name in front of me!" David cuts him off. He grabs his neck and gets even closer to his face.

„I don't ever want to hear her name coming out of your mouth. Or I will cut off your tongue, saw it to your forehead...and make you lick her grave with it."

Damon just stands there with no words out of him. He knows David is a man of his words. He makes a threat, you better take it seriously. So, he just nods his head in understanding.

The man lets him go and turns his back on him. Damon can't see his face, but he knows that he is upset.

He turns to face him again after he restrains himself and points his finger on Bonnie that's sitting at the bar.

„Don't you think I should do something to her? It would be a punishment enough just for your running away!" he yells.

Damon watches the man in silence. He hears the door opening but doesn't turn to see the intruder.

„Would you stop messing with his head, David?"

The two men turn to the sound of the voice.

At the dorway is standing a tall woman with blond curly hair that reachs to the end of her chin, her eyes are dark brown and she has a short red dress on with a black scarf that she uses as a bolero. She has gold earrings and a golden necklace around her neck.

David smiles at the women makes a few steps closer to her and hugs her.

„Let bygones be bygones, right?" she tells him after they separate from the hug.

David puts his hand on her back and leads her closer to Damon.

„Damon? You remember Alice? My sister."

She extends her hand towards him and Damon shakes it slowly.

„Vaguely. The birthday girl, right?"

She nods with knowing smile on her lips.

That's right!" David says and makes his way over the large window again. „This whole party is in her honor! She came back from London for a couple of days to spend her birthday with her brother."

„Well, you can't turn your back on family, right?" she says looking at her brother.

„Right." David says with a smile.

„So, why did you call me here? Oscar told me you wanted to see me?" she says with a bored expression on her face. „I do hope, you didn't call me to watch your revenge on old friends. You know I hate violence, David."

„I do know." He makes his way over to Damon. „Which is why I'm making amends with one right now."

He extends his hand towards the blue eyes vampire and waits for him to accept it.

„All in your honor, sister."

He looks over at the blonde women for a moment and then back to Damon, who hesitates for a moment, but takes his hand and shake it.

„Leave the past in the past, as it belongs there."

He lets go of his hand and turns to his sister.

„Ali, would you be a dear and take Damon downstairs? Get him a drink on the house and escort him to his lovely friend."

The women nods with a smile and motions her head to Damon so can follow her. He does that without a word.

She leads him downstairs and once at the party, they make their way to the bar. She orders them drinks and once the bartender brought them she hands him a bourbon.

„That's your drink, right?" she asks him while sipping her white wine.

„You remember." Damon says.

„Of course, I remember. I haven't forgotten about you, Damon." She says taking a step closer to him and puting her hand on his chest.

He looks at her closely, but takes a step back, surprising her with his move.

„You should be careful, your brother could get a wrong idea."

„My brother can suck it." Sho tells him. „Besides, I'm sure he already ran off with his gorillas to take care of 'business'." She says sarcastically.

„It's your birthday party, Ali. He wouldn't do that." damon sings it.

„That's exactly why he does that." She says rolling her eyes. „He prepares me this big enormous party, so I wouldn't notice when he skips doing some nasty stuff around. His job is very violent, and I rather stay out if it."

„Smart call." Damon says and takes a sip of his bourbon.

She takes a step closer to him and puts her hand on his neck to pull him closer so she can whisper in her ear.

„Would you like a different kind of drink?" she asks him suggestively. „There's a back room here, where we keep the food."

He knows exactly what kind of food she refers to and he tentatively shakes his head. He had a blood back at the motel, while Bonnie was getting ready.

Speaking of Bonnie, he thinks he should probably find her. His eyes scan the crowd looking for her.

„Who is she?" Alice asks him.

„A friend of a friend." He tells her the same as her brother.

She smiles.

„She's a Bennett witch. And you're here in town sorting out some witch business."

He is surprised by her words, but only for a moment. He smiles and nods his head.

„Sam." He says. He knows Sam spilled the beans about his whereabouts.

„Just, please don't tell me it has to do with 'Katherine Pierce'. You're not still infatuated with her, are you?"

„Better if we don't mention her name." Damon says with a frown, while Alice smiles.

„I'll take that as a no." She puts her hands on his shoulders and looks him closely in his eyes.

„Is there somebody else in your life, Damon?"

He looks at her, smiles, and puts his an empty glass on the bar. He takes her hands in his and looks down at them.

„I should go back." He just says.

She looks confused for a moment but then straightens up.

„To your 'friend of a friend'?" she repeats her words almost sounding mockingly.

„I left her alone for a long time." He reasons. He lets go of her hands and just as he turns around, the blonde women grabs his shoulder and turns him strongly. She wraps her arms around him and kisses the left side of his neck.

„Dance with me, Damon." She tells him huskily in his ear.

He looks down at her and shakes his head, as politely as he can. There's a tight little smile on his lips.

„We can't do that, Ali."

„Nobody calls me Ali anymore." She tells him passionately.

„Your brother does."

„It doesn't sound sexy as it does coming from your mouth." She bites her lip and Damon doesn't speak.

„One dance, Damon." She begs „You wouldn't disappoint a girl on her birthday, would you?"

He hesitates for a moment but gives in. He lets her take him to the dance floor and presses her body to his tightly. She puts her arms possessively around his neck and they work their dance moves together.

He never really could say no to Ali. Back in the day, she was his secret girl and together they made fireworks. She is extremely pretty, and being a vampire, gave her some more allure he couldn't resist.

She turns her body around, pressing her back against his front and sways her hips in rhythm, grinding her ass against his front. A smile creeps on his lips and he accepts her game.

For a moment he raises his look and his eyes land on Bonnie. She's sitting at the bar, laughing at a guy who's standing next to her. He hands her a drink in a glass and she takes it with a smile.

Damon's eyes can't stop following her moves and he's ready to jump anytime now.

The guy points to something to Bonnie's right and she turns her head around. The guy uses the opportunity to reach in his pocket, getting a small folded paper in his hand.

Bonnie turns back to him and tells him something to which he laughs. She turns her head back again and he slips some powder from the paper in her drink.

She turns her head back to him and takes her drink in her hand. The guy raises his and clinks their glasses together.

It makes Damon's blood boil. He marches over to them, letting Alice alone on the dance floor without a word.

Bonnie raises her glass to her lips and before she could take a sip of it, a strong pale hand tears of the drink from her lips and angrily sets it on the bar in front of her. She gasps at the move and looks with her eyes wide open on her intruder.

„Damon!" she screams.

„What did I tell you about talking to anyone and accepting a drink?!" he viciously spits on her.

Damon's staring at her with rage in his eyes, his lips tightly pressed together.

She matches her look with his, then stands up from her stool and pushes him at the chest angrily. Damon doesn't budge from her push.

„Who the hell do you think you are?! Coming at me like that?! You arrogant, idiot bastard!"

She starts kicking at his chest with her fists but he grabs them and holds her tightly against himself. There are people around them looking at them curiously, and Alice comes from behind Damon to put her hand on his shoulder.

„Damon! What are you doing?" she asks him.

Bonnie releases herself from his grip and looks at the women behind Damon with wide eyes. This is why he left her alone? So he can go find himself a bimbo?

„We're leaving now." He says to Bonnie lowly, ignoring everybody around them. Bonnie tears of her arm from him again.

„Like hell, we are! You're not the boss of me!"

He's about to grab her again when the guy beside Bonnie stops him.

„Hey! Why don't you let the lady make her own decisions?" he tells him.

Damon raises his look to the guy for the first time. He didn't want to look at him because he knew the moment he did he's gonna lose it. The guy just signed his own death certificate.

He smiles evilly to the guy and pushes softly Bonnie of the way, while she looks confused at him.

„Like you would let her make a decision go home with you? Like you would let her decide that by herself?" Damon asks him in a low voice.

The guy stands a little straighter and looks Damon right in the eyes.

„If that's what she wants." He says proudly.

Damon laughs in his chin and nods his head like a crazy person. In a second he grabs Bonnie's drink with one hand and the guy's neck with the other, smashing his back on the bar strongly.

The guy yells in pain, bringing the attention of the people around them.

Damon leans the drink and shoves it in the guy's mouth, making him swallow every drop that gets in his mouth. The guy gurgles and coughs, but some of the liquid ends up in his stomach.

Bonnie watches Damon in a full mode anger and rage, a small familiar feeling of fear crossing her body. She takes a step closer, trying to get Damon's attention, but before she could say anything, a hand on her shoulder stops her.

She turns around, looking the unfamiliar blonde beside her. „I wouldn't if I were you." She warns her.

Bonnie looks at her strangely and diverts her eyes on Damon and Charlie, the guy who politely offered to buy her drink, 'because a pretty lady like her shouldn't be alone'.

Damon lets go of the guy watching his moves very closely. Charlie's eyes are wide and glassy, his face wet and his mouth and throat burn like hell.

„What the hell is wrong with you?" Bonnie yells at Damon, pushing him away from Charlie and helping him stand straight.

„If I were you, I would think very good about the next decision you make, cause it might end up being your last one, you pathetic little troll!" Damon directs the threat to Charlie, who detaches himself from Bonnie, looks around himself and runs for the exit as fast as he can.

Bonnie watches after him in confusion.

„Was it roofie?" the blonde girl asks Damon, bringing Bonnie's attention back.

Damon shakes his head and shrugs. He has no idea what the guy slipped in Bonnie's drink.

„I'll make sure they check if there was somebody with him." Alice tells him, glancing at Bonnie. „You should take her outside. I'll take care of the mess and come to check on you."

Damon nods and watches the women leave.

He directs his look over at Bonnie who appears to be lost and confused, but most of all embarrassed.

* * *

A few minutes later they're at the parking lot, Bonnie leaning on the hood of Damon's car, her eyes teary, arms hugging herself, her look directed to the pavement.

Damon's standing a few steps away from her, pacing the parking lot, while they wait Alice to come. His eyes scan over at Bonnie who's shivering. Without thinking, he slips his leather jacket of-of him and walks over to her. He puts the jacket on her shoulders, watching her closely, trying to read in her eyes what she's thinking. She fidgets in her stand, blinking her eyes rapidly, careful not to look back at him.

He stands in front of her, not backing down and he reaches for her chin with his fingers. She refuses to raise her head to him, but when he nudges her a couple of times and softly says her name until she obeys him.

Her glossy shining eyes meet his blue penetrating look and her breath gets stuck in her throat. His face softens and he watches her skin glowing on the brisk night air, illuminated by the yellow street lights.

There is something in her eyes there. But, it's not fear, it's not anger. He doesn't know what it is, but he knows it's not something she often shows.

He sees Bonnie Bennett, the judgy, vampire hating witch in her, but he also sees Bonnie, the simple, young girl with the prettiest green eyes and heart shaped pink lips. There are no shadows or tricks here. She's showing all her colors to him. And, boy, she is something.

He licks his lips and opens his mouth to speak, but another women's voice beat him to it.

„Damon!"

He lets go of Bonnie abruptly, turning to the voice and directing his look to Alice, who's walking over in his direction. She has a black coat on and she seems to be carrying a bottle of water in her hand.

„The guy's name is Charlie Wilson. He's a town punk kid, who got some powder from a local diller. I called David, he said he's gonna take care of it." She informs him quickly.

Damon nods and the blonde women look over his shoulder to the young girl with her eyes fixated on the ground again. Damon notices her look, nods to her and moves from his stand, letting Alice make her way carefully over to Bonnie.

Alice looks at her sweetly, with a smile on her face, but the other girl doesn't want to notice her, so she makes herself presentable.

„Hi!. You're Bonnie, right? I'm Alice Finch." She says with a hand streched in front of her.

Bonnie raises her eyes at the woman and tentatively accepts the blonde's hand without a word.

„I got you some water." Alice hands her the bottle of water, which Bonnie suspiciously eyes but never the less, takes and twists the cap off, to take a few sips.

„Are you alright?"

Bonnie just nods her head. She licks her lips from the water and closes the bottle.

„I'm sorry this happened." Alice apologizes. „Usually, we take good care of who enters the club. We're very restricting when it comes to drugs and substances like that."

Bonnie snorts and laughs, then raises herself from the hood of the car and hands the bottle back to the women, who is looking at her strangely.

„It's kind of hypocrite,... your stand on the drugs and taking other people's choices away, when that's all you vampire's do."

She has a confident look in her eyes and doesn't let the blonde make her feel small or dumb like she did in the club. Maybe it wasn't the attention, but something about her really bugged Bonnie.

She diverts her eyes angrily at Damon. He knows she is mad at him, for acting the way he did. But, he didn't think, all he knew he wanted to protect her and make the guy pay, but he actually restrained himself from finishing the job and killing him.

„Well, I hope you'll enjoy your stay in town, anyway." The blonde tells her, the smile dropping from her lips and taking a step back from the girl.

Bonnie tosses her a quick glance and turns around to enter the car, making herself comfortable on the passenger seat.

Alice looks at her curiously and bites the inside of her cheek to stop herself from smiling. She turns back to Damon, who looks conflicted.

„She is quite a spitfire." She tells him referring to Bonnie. „I like her."

One corner of his mouth drew up and he hums to Alice's words. She takes a deep breath and brushes the invisible dust off his shoulders. He looks at her hands doing that and smiles, while she raises her look to his eyes and smiles back at him.

„Don't leave without saying goodbye." She tells him softly.

He leans down and kisses her cheek.

„Happy birthday, Ali." He smirks and passes her by to get in his car.

He takes the seat and turns the ignition on, while he speeds down the street. He can see Alice waving at him in his rearview mirror, while Bonnie sits beside him, with her head turned to the window, and arms crossed in her lap.

* * *

 _Saturday 11: 00 p.m._

She doesn't talk to him at all. Not even a word.

Last night he brought them back to the motel and she went straight to the bathroom. When she got out, she was in her sweats again and she aimed for the bed.

He knows she was pretending to sleep because he could hear her breathing and her heartbeat. He knows what a sleeping person sounds like.

Before they leave to Sam's, hhe gets a phonecall from Elena and he gives her privacy while she lies about her pretend cold. The other girl promises that she and Stefan will be back at Mystic Falls tomorow around noon.

They get to Sam's house with no word exchanged between them.

There's a car parked on the street beside the house, but they don't overlook it.

They get out of the car and head to the door. Damon knocks on them, while Bonnie stands behind him and waits for the door to open.

„Damon! Bonnie!" The redhead witch exclaims when she opens her door. „You're early." She says with a smile.

„We gotta hit the road after we're done, so..." Damon says.

Sam smiles more widely and nods. „Alright. Well, we should do this."

„I guess that's my cue to leave." Alice appears behind the witch from the corner and smiles awkwardly.

Damon simply nods to her and Bonnie turns her head to the side, faking ignorance.

„Thank you so much for having me, Sam." The blonde vampire hugs the redhead witch tightly.

„Always a pleasure, Alice." Sam tells her, once they pull away from the hug.

„I'll make sure we stay in touch while I'm in town." Alice promises and steps out of the house.

She looks at Damon and stops in front of him.

„You mind if we have a word, Damon?" she asks him sweetly. He just nods.

She turns her head to Bonnie and greets her.

„It was nice seeing you again, Bonnie."

But Bonnie doesn't answer her, she just rolls her eyes and pushes forward, entering Sam's house. After the both witches are safely behind doors, Alice leaves the porch and Damon follows her.

Alice stands in front of the car and says to her driver it will only take a minute. The man doesn't seem very pleased with it as he eyes strangly Damon. She turns back to Damon who stands in front of her with his hands in his jean pockets.

She glances qiuckly at the house again and smiles to Damon.

„I don't think your witch likes me very much." She says laughing.

„She's... still tired from last night." He explains.

The women purses her lips, knowing that is only part true.

„Right." She takes a step closer to hmi, forgeting about the girl inside and puts her hand on his chest, brushing and squezing them tightly.

„What do you say you and I go to get some lunch somewhere? I am dying for a nice meal." She says suggestivlly.

Of course, he knows exactly what kind of meal she thinks of. She grabs roughly at the collar of his jacket and tugs him down crashing her lips strongly and passionately on his. She bites on his lower lip and swishes her tongue in his mouth. He excepts it and plays with it, dancing tongues in his mouth.

She's grabbing his jacket harder and harder, while his one hand is still in his pocket and the other is grabbing her hair.

He pulls her off by her neck and takes a step back from her. She looks at him expectantly. He diverts his look from her and she breaths heavily. His eyes follow the patterns on the sidewalk, thinking how different it fells to kiss Alice now. It's been 17 years since the last he seen her or kisse her, so he couldn't excpect it would be the same.

„I should go get inside." He says after a moment of silence.

She huffs in frustration and a laugh escapes her. He looks back at her. She takes two steps forward and grabs his arms, looking at his eyes.

„Damon. They're doing witch's business. You're a vampire. You have no business getting in the middle of that. Come with me and be a vampire."

She raises her hand and caresses his cheek.

„I missed you so much." She speaks slowly, locking her eyes on his, caressing him and touching, hoping it will make him aceept her offer. „Let me show you just how much. Leave the girl here, she's safe with Sam. And let's go have some fun."

„I left her alone last night, Ali." He says seriously, taking her hands off his face.

„It's not your fault for what happened."

„I brought her here. If something would've happened...-"

„It didn't." She reasons.

He looks in the direction of the house hesitently and she emidiatlly knows his answer. He doesn't even need to tell her. She knows how to read that look. She saw it all those years ago and she still remembers. The moment she laid her eyes on Bonnie, she was reminded of a girl she knew back than. And she always knew Damon had a soft spot for her.

„She's not really just a friend of a friend, is she?" she asks almoust dissapointed.

„She is."

„She must be special." She says as he looks back at her eyes, reading straight what she meant.

It's not the same. He knows it's not. Bonnie is not Melanie. She doesn't even come close to her. But, there is something about the Bennett witch that makes him think she is in his responcability. And after what happened with Mel, he doesn't ever want to repeat that.

„Goodbye, Ali."

„Take care, Damon."

Bonnie's in the kitchen, situated on a stool by the counter, waiting for Sam to get the tea ready for them. She looks around herself, observing the room.

The kitchen is in white marble wood, designed in a traditional way. The kitchen cabinets are classic with glass windows and there's a large breakfast counter in the middle where Bonnie is curently sitting. The kitchen has large windows that illuminate the room with a lot of brightness and sunshine. The view's on the back yard, that has a nice swing set surrounded with a garden ful of all kinds of flowers.

„Here you go." Sam tells her handing her a cup of hot tea. „Sugar?"

Bonnie nods. „Yes, please."

The women turns around and opens the kitchen cabinet above the stove. She takes a white box out and closes the cabinet. Her head looks down as she opens the drawer on her left and pulls two small teaspoons out of it.

„So, how do you know Alice?" Bonnie asks her.

She turns back to the girl and smiles handing her the spoon.

„Alice and I go way back."

„She and Damon seem close." Bonnie commentes bitterly.

Sam looks at her curiously, stiring the teaspoon in her mug.

„I suppose you could say that." She says, lifting the cup to her mouth and blowing at the hot liquid in her mug. She sets it down on the counter. „Damon was sort of her 'guy'. But it was kept secret, because of her brother, David."

Bonnie just sits silently, not commenting. Sam looks at her waiting for a comment, but the girl stays silent.

„Bonnie, are you okay? Alice told me what happened yesterday." Sam asks her softly.

„I'm fine." Bonnie says trying to keep herself cool, but seeing the doubtfull look an the raising eyebrows on the other womens face makes her explode.

„You know,-" she says, with a hysterical laugh escaping her. „I don't understand why everybody keeps making a big fuss about it!" She comments angrily. „It's not like anything happened! So, a guy tried to drug me...but he didn't!"

„I understand, but... Bonnie, it _almost_ happened to you, it _could have_ happened to somebody else."

„I get that." She says frustrated. „I just... I don't like the way everybody handled the situation."

„You mean how Damon handled it." Sam corrects her.

„Yeah." She admitts softly. „But not just him...I mean... he had no right acting the way he did. There are boundaries to everything, and the guy..." she sighs „there are proper authorities who would take care of him."

„Bonnie, I understand. I do." Sam tells her. „But, I don't think you do. That may be the way how things work in your town, but here we got a different way of handling wrongdoers."

Bonnie looks at her with surprise and Sam's face is serious.

„The police has no law here and we don't work under them. The town doesn't belong to townspeople or locals. We have only one law that we listen to, and one man's word we follow. That's David Finch."

„Is he like a mayor or something?"

„No. He is the owner of _The Sapphire_ and Alice's brother. He runs the law around here."

„He's a vampire?" Bonnie asks frowning.

„Yes. I know you think that's not the way things are supposed to function, but they do. I mean, a vampire managing the town and everybody following his lead? It sounds crazy."

„Yeah. Nobody should have that kind of power. Can't you do something about it?" the younger witch asks with a spike of anger going out of her.

„You think I'm under his foot, too?" Sam smiles „I'm a witch and if anything he's under mine. Why do you think I let him be the master of all? We have an agreement. He has the right over the town and the right to feed himself and his minions in town, but he has an obligation to keep safe the town from offenders and criminals."

„That's insane!" Bonnie yells, but Sam just shrugs.

„Hey, say what you want. Meanwhile, Ellicott City has one of the lowest crime rates in the last 10 years." She says with a certain amount pf pride in her voice and Bonnie's not sure she likes it.

„But you let vampires feed off humans. That's not exactly keeping them safe."

„I thought you would have that opinion. But, look at it this way. Witches are the servants of nature. And people, humans are nature's children. Which means, it's our job to keep things in order. But, the natural order works in different ways. People feed off animals for centuries now, and animals are natures children, too.

Why? Because they can. Because they are stronger and smarter. People think they are the highest on the food chain, but every species thinks like that for themselves. You see, vampires feed on people, because it's the way for them to survive. So, it makes them a part of the food chain."

„So, you're saying vampires are actually on the top of the food chain?"

„Not exactly. They might think like that, but there is a species much stronger and powerful than them."

„Who?"

„Witches. We are the law of nature. We serve directly to her and that makes us the strongest. A witch can kill a vampire in a blink of an eye. We have such great amount of power and we use like one-third of it. If we would use the entire strength there is, vampires would be worshiping the land we walk on."

Bonnie looks at her but doesn't speak. If this is the truth, she is more powerful then she has thought.

„Now, why don't you tell me what's bothering you?" Sam changes the topic, which Bonnie gladly accpets, explaining everything she know to the woman.

„Well, I can see I'm still on the guest house list." Damon comments entering the house.

„You and Alice shortened everything out?" Sam asks him when he enters the kitchen.

He nods.

„What are you two doing?" he asks looking at Bonnie, who's sitting quietly by the counter, not daring to raise her eyes to him.

„Well, Bonnie was telling me about the spell she did. But, I'm having a problem understanding which spell it was exactly."

„Right." Damon says before the woman has a chance to speak again and sets a grimoire on the kitchen counter to start flipping the pages. He finds the spell and turns the book to Sam.

„This one."

She takes the book in her hands and looks over it. She quickly nods and looks at Bonnie.

„I'm gonna have to take a look at this and consult my books for details. I'll be upstairs. You two can take a walk or watch TV or something."

Sam takes the book and makes her way out of the kitchen. Bonnie sits on her place looking straight ahead of her, holding her cup of tea in her hand, even though it's been empty for the last 10 minutes.

Damon stands next to her, leaning on the kitchen counter with his palms extended in front of him. None of them say anything. Damon looks to the side watching Bonnie play with the mug in her hands.

He wants to say something but, doesn't know what or how. She seems so mad.

He taps his fingers on the surface to get her attention. She looks down at his fingers hesitantly but says nothing.

„Did you sleep well last night?" He asks her all of the suden.

She looks at him with wide eyes, surprised at his question.

He shakes his head trying to get her to talk, but notices she is confused and not willing to answer.

„Look about last night..." he starts.

„Oh, God..." she sighs, moves from her spot, taking the mug and placing it in the sink.

She turns to look at him, exhales and starts walking out of the house. She takes the back door, out from the kitchen, leading to the big spacious back yard.

The door swings and squicks behind her, letting the slightly cold air tickle her on her face. She takes a few steps further, breathing in the fresh air and watching the green grass around her.

She takes a seat on the backyard swing when she hears the door swing open and looks up to them. Damon is standing frozen and watching her closely.

She lets herself look straight to him this time and he takes cautious steps closer to her. He sits next to her on the swing and it squicks as he does. They stay silent like that for a long time.

When she can't take any more of the awkwardness, she sighs deeply, closing her eyes for a moment.

„You don't have to feel bad about what happened. I'm not upset."

„Really?" he asks surprised and looks at her, „Cause it seems to me like you are."

She shakes her head. „Nothing happened."

„But you're still mad at me?" he asks.

„I'm not mad..."she trails off when she looks at him and sees him giving her a look 'really?'.

„Fine." She says bitterly. „So I'm mad at you."

„Wanna tell me why exactly?"

„About how you acted. You left me alone and then came back like a crazy man, when it's your fault it happened in the first place. Because you were too busy taking care of your 'friend'."

„So you're mad I left you alone?" he asks frowning

„I don't even know why exactly I am mad anymore!" she yells frustraited. She sighs againa nd crosses her arms under her chest. „I just want to go home. This road trip sucks."

„I look into the spell you did...and..." Sam trails over, her eyes raising at Bonnie and Damon that are sitting in the kitchen again across from her.

„And...?" Damon repeats after her.

„I haven't found anything wrong with it." She finally lets it out, a look of disapointment on the vampire's face. „I mean, every spell is dangerous and can go wrong, but... I thought about everything you said to me...and there is nothing that would point into the spell going wrong."

„So...what now?" Bonnie asks confused. „Isn't there something else we could do? Maybe some other kind of spell or something?"

„The problem is..." Sam stops for a moment, thinking what words she can chose here. „I don't think that anything magical has caused your memory loss. And you said it yourself, your memories haven't exactly been lost, they've been replaced with different ones."

There's a long pause here, as Bonnie seems more confused than before and Damon almoust looks pissed.

„Now, I wanna ask you sometnig. Between the life you remember and the one you've been living the past few days...is there something, anything remotely that stayed the same?"

Bonnie frowns. She thinks about the question.

„Well, people are the same, but with different stories. I mean, I remember Elena, and Caroline, my supposed best friends, but in my memories, they're nothing but town folks to me. Somebody I don't really know that well."

„And in this life?"

„And here, they are my best friends."

„What is the difference between the ones you knew and the ones you know now?" Sam presses.

„Well..." Bonnie's surprised, not understanding what is sam actually asking her. „I told you they are my best friends here and back home, I don't know them."

„Okay... Is there something else, besides them that's in common to both sides?"

Bonnie sighs and thinks for a while. What could be the similar ground between these two worlds? One thing pops to her mind.

„Matt..." she says frowning, glancing for a moment at Damon and than bak at the witch. „A friend... I remember him, he is my best friend from childhood and he is here too. We even have some similar memories."

„Let me ask you this, Bonnie..." Sam starts carefully. „Is Matt human? In both worlds?"

„Yes, yes he is." The girl answers slowly.

„What's going on, Sam?" Damon asks quietly, but she ignores him.

„And... Caroline and Elena?"

„Caroline's a vampire and Elena is dating one..." she stops for a moment. „but she is human,... well, she's a doubleganger, but human."

Sam nods, slowly blinking her eyes rapidly.

„What are you trying to say?" Bonnie asks in a whisper, as the other witch leans over the counter closer to Bonnie.

„When you think about it, the only thing that is different between these two worlds, is the supernatural aspect. You have no memories of vampires, doublegangers or witches in your past life. But, here you live in a world where you're surrounded by them. Moreover, you are a witch by yourself."

„What does that mean?" Bonnie asks confused.

„Amnesia is a deficit in memory caused by brain damage, disease, or some kind of psychological trauma."

„You think... this is a medical cause?"

„Not exactly. Well, a big part of it could be...but not entirely." Pause. „It doesn't necessarily have to be a hit in the head or anything...but... before you lost your memories... is there something big that was supposed to happen?"

„I don't know... I mean, I don't remember..."

„Klaus. You were supposed to kill Klaus." Damon cuts her of.

„I don't see how..." Bonnie starts, but this time Sam cuts her off.

„Do you remember what I told you about how witches are the servants of nature? How we are on the top of a food chain?" she waits for Bonnie to nod. „That is a big obligation. A big, huge kind of pressure that something so important depends on us.

And, a lot of things depended on of you. You were literally, the weapon, the one who is supposed to kill an immortal hybrid. The one who is suppose to save all the people you love and care about. You were practically signing your own death certificate.

You were sent to face the death. And you knew that.

That, the knowledge that you're gonna die and there's nothing you can do about it, is a huge trauma. Nobody in his own mind would ever stay normal over something like that. Your world was revolving around the fact that you have to face this man and die."

„But, she faced him." Damon interupts her. „She faked her own death and fooled him. She won."

„Only the battle. She had to face him again and that meant war was not over."

„I don't understand." Bonnie stands from her seat, starting to pace around the kitchen,as sam continues to explain the situation to her.

„Bonnie, you remember the world which is perfect, with a normal family, normal friends, and a normal you. You had no obligations, no enemies, no battles you had to prepare yourself to. And this is the world that is hard to understand, and hard to live in, especially when you're a witch."

„So, you're saying I made up a perfect life for myself, cause I couldn't take the pressure of this one?" Bonnie asks hystericlly.

„I'm saying, you lived through a trauma and your brain needed a vacation from all the heaviness and stress. You just needed a trigger."

„And what do you suppose this trigger was?" Damon asks.

„Fear." The redhead witch answers diverting her eyes back on the witch. „You were afraid. You didn't want to die. You were scared of it. So, when you did that spell, you put your body to sleep and your brain shot off for a while. When you woke up, it was supposed to come back, but the fear prevented your brain from embracing it all again. Fear took over and it is still in you, not letting you have it back."

„How am I suppose to have it back? How do I remember?" the confused witch asks exsaspirated.

„I'm afraid that's not something anybody can do for you." Sam tells her shaking her head and giving her one last peace of advice. „You need to do it by yourself. You need to overcome that fear, find your inner strength, your courage. You have to face it, that you are strong and you can beat this. You have to find yourself, honey, because right now you are pretty much lost. Don't let the fear control you, take things into your own hands and live your life the way want to."

* * *

 _ **So...this took longer than I thought, plus I didn't involve everything I wated to, but I hope I'll get it in the next chapter. Anyway, I know you guys are curious about the what happened at the end of this trip and in the alley, but it's coming in the 13th...**_

 _ **I don't think it will take long until the next update, because I really strugeled with this one, so the writer block is hopefulla gone.**_

 _ **Thank you all for sticking to this story, it really means a lot! And as always reviews are loved! See you next time!**_


	13. Chapter 13 - Taste of your lips

CHAPTER 13 - Taste of your lips (Roadtrip Part 3 )

 _Saturday 03:09 p.m._

By the time they got back to the motel it was already 3 pm. If they wanted to be back in Mystic Falls by night, they had to be on their way back already. But, that wasn't worrying Damon at the time.

Right now, he's a little more concerned for the girl, that's sitting on the bed, inside the motel room, not moving. Her hands folded in her lap and her eyes settled on the floor.

Since they left Sam's house, she's been a silent mess. And the more silent she got, the more Damon got worried.

„Okay, what is wrong with you?" he asks tiredly, stopping his packing and looking at the girl. „Will you move already? We should be on our way."

Like no words have been spoken to her, she just sits there and ignores him.

„Bennett! Are you still mad at me?"

Hesitantly, she shakes her head for no. Damon takes a few slow steps closer to her.

„Then, tell me, what's wrong?"

She looks at him finally, her face blank, empty and sad. He flinches a little seeing her like that.

„I don't know what I'm doing." She says quietly with a shaky voice.

„You're gonna be fine." He casually tells her.

„No." She shakes her head in denial.

„You are. Look, I get that this is a surprise, but at least now we know."

„I thought it was true." She tells him frowning, on the verge of tears.

„What?"

She shakes her head as tears start to pull down her cheeks.

„I thought this was some sort of dream, and I'm gonna wake up anytime, from this nightmare. I thought... I'm gonna get back to my world, my reality. I just thought this is not permanent, that I'm gonna wake up and be normal again."

Her cheeks are wet from her tears, her nose is stuffy, as she starts sobbing and her whole body shakes from the heaviness of her feelings.

„I thought this was a lie, my life couldn't be this complicated. I mean, a world filled with death and vampires and werewolves, and witches!" she snorts and laughs hysterically.

„How could it ever be true?" she laughs and cries at the same time.

Damon looks her closely but doesn't say a word to her. He doesn't want to deal with this. He doesn't want for Bonnie to feel like this. But, this is where they are and it's on him to do something about it.

He crosses the space separating them and sits down next to her, waiting for her to come to her senses. He observes her appearance, dressed in a burgundy sweater, dark jeans and brown ankle boots. Her hair, wavy and messy, her two green eyes shining brightly. An absolutely captivating scent of lavender wafting from her clear, soft skin.

She manages to calm down, her eyes are still wet and she's still crying. His eyes follow very closely her every move.

„What made you change your mind?"

She looks at him questionably, not understanding what he's asking her.

„Why did you stopped believing that your memories aren't the reality, bur rather this world is?" he asks genuinely concerned.

She looks back down at the floor, her hands fidgeting in her lap again, thinking about the answer. She takes a deep breath, forcing herself to sober up from tears and having enough strength to speak.

„Sam said the trigger was fear." She finally says.

„And I felt it. I knew it is in me." She raises her look to him, watching straight in those blue eyes of his.

„The fear... I'm scared. I can't deny it when I feel it inside so strongly. It's..." she clenches her fists and with one hand points to her stomach. „It's in the pit of my stomach and it's suffocating me... I know what the truth is, I just don't know how to..." She chokes on her words.

Damon shakes his head to get himself straight and stands from his place, with his back turned on her.

With Bonnie Bennett, he knows it's easy to forget who she was before she was the witch. Truth to be told, he didn't exactly know her before she was a witch. But, he got used to the strong, tough, not backing down from a fight, self-righteous, judgy witch. If she put her mind to it, she could have killed him in a blink of an eye. She was powerful, red-blooded and determined. Her magic was practically firing out of her.

The difference was, this Bonnie, the one he had the 'pleasure' to hang out these past few days, had a different behavior from the one he was used to. She was still tough and she's still Bonnie, but something was different. She was more... human.

But, come to think of it, she was not _the witch_. Sure, it's the first thing that pops into your mind when you hear her name, but there was something people kept forgetting about her, Damon included. She's just a kid. She's just a girl. She got loaded this new world and sense of obligation when she was 17, and she had to find her place to stand in it. And, the miraculous thing is, she actually did.

So, now, that part of her, lost or suppressed somewhere, it's easy to see her human side. Her innocent and childlike, bubbly personality emerging on the surface and not covered with the firmness and toughness she usually hid it with.

„I think I know a way...to help you." He says, turning back to look at her.

She raises her eyes to him with a confused look.

„But, you might not like it." He continues slowly.

„What are you talking about?" she asks frowning.

He takes a few steps closer to her, stuffing his hands in his jeans pockets and looking at her in her eyes.

„I could give you some of my blood."

Even though he expects for her to go full on crazy, start screaming and throwing things at him, she just raises her eyebrows.

„You want to feed me vampire blood?" she asks surprisingly, brushing her wet cheeks with her hand.

He nods, still expecting her to get mad.

„Why?" she asks. „What would that do?"

He blinks a few times and licks his lips, preparing himself for this speech.

„Well, it would be stupid if I said, that you would get your memories back because vampire blood has mystical powers, blah blah blah. I would not even say that you would have access to my memories, because, let's be honest, if that were true, there's no way in hell I would let anyone do that." He says truthfully.

She nods slowly, still not understanding where is he going with this.

„So, what's the point?"

He purses his lips and swings his head lightly in thought. He takes a few more steps closer, which makes her raise her look higher to him.

„When somebody becomes a vampire, everything is heightened. Everything that person felt right to the point of turning, gets 10 times more intense. That's why we vampires are so cocky and arrogant. We fell like nothing can touch us, or beat us, because if we won over death, nothing is impossible."

He lets the words to sunk in.

„The point is...we're tougher, stronger, bolder. It's who we are. It's in our blood. So, if you take a little vampire blood, it could do the same for you. I'm not saying, it would fix the problem instantly and at first, but there is a small chance...for you to, maybe overcome the fear inside of you."

Bonnie diverts her eyes from him and thinks about his words. It's not a fact or something that will 100% fix the problem. It just could be of help, but not necessarily. She still remembers when he fed Elena his blood and how badly did everybody reacted to it. So, she doesn't see any reason to try something like that.

„I'm not so sure... I don't know if it's exactly smart." She says

„I know. But, it's just a suggestion." He says. „If you want to do it, I'm here to help."

„Okay."

„Good." He starts to turn around and remind her again. „We should get going. It's gonna be dark soon."

* * *

He puts the bags in the car and goes get them checked out of the motel. He knows this whole thing is playing with her sanity, but he thinks it will get better once they return home.

Maybe his suggestion was a little too much for her. Maybe he just freaked her out with it. He shakes it out of his head and goes back to get her out of the room, so they can get the hell out of this town.

Once he's in front of the room, he sees the doors are not closed, but a little ajar. He's sure he closed them when he stepped out of the room, so naturally, he suspects something's wrong. He listens for a sound from the inside, but all he can hear is the shuffling of the clothes.

He nudges the door slowly and exhales in relief too soon when he sees Bonnie standing in the middle of the room. She has an uneasy expression on her face and she doesn't move from her stand. As he steps inside of the room, she softly, frighted whispers his name.

„Damon."

He frowns at her expression and in a blink of an eye, somebody grabs him from behind and kicks him in the gut. As he cringes in pain, a pair of other strong arms grab him around his chest and a burning sting pierces his neck.

The burning sensation spreads through his body, and he knows immediately he's being vervained. It's enough to weaken him, but not to make him faint.

In the background, he hears Bonnie's screams, but they become muffled by another vampire who's holding a hand over her mouth and another arm is holding her around her waist, so she doesn't run away.

He has the strongest urge to run over to her, save her from the hands of the, in his mind already dead vampire, and protect her at all cost. But, he feels a relief from the needle that was stuck in his neck, as the man who was holding him pushes him roughly on the ground and once again he falls on his face first.

He can't get the strength in his body enough to get himself up on his feet, so he stays on the floor. His eyes are half open and he unintentionally drools over the floor.

He coughs heavily as a foot kicks him one more time in his stomach and that's when he sees a pair of Italian shoes in front of his face. He doesn't need to raise his look to know who it is. He would recognize them anywhere.

He snorts in a mock sound and struggles to put himself in a sitting position to take a deep breath. When he finally manages to sit up, he raises his eyes at the man in front of him, who doesn't have a friendly expression of his face.

„David." Damon says not in the least surprised and weakly raises himself on his feet, noticing the two man behind him being on alert if he tries something.

„Tell me, this welcome comity, you use on all of your friends, or am I the lucky one?"

Damon wipes his mouth with the back of his hand, while the man in front of him, looks at him with a stone cold expression.

They hold each other's look for a long time, when David smiles maliciously (the only way he knows), and turns his back on Damon, who stays in place. He takes the opportunity and looks over at Bonnie, who was still being held down by another one of Davids gorillas.

„You know, yesterday, when we talked, Damon...I really did mean all about the forgiveness." David says and turns back to look at Damon.

„Yeah?" the blue eyed vampire asks full of disbelief. „Then what's with the 'fight club' escort?"

„I honestly thought: Hey, it's been more than 15 years, the times have changed, things are different. You and I..."he says pointing between them „were friends once, maybe I should just let bygones be bygones."

Damon stays silent, not understanding what the man's trying to say.

„And, then...You come with a backstabbing secret." David shakes his head in anger. „I should behead you right on this spot!"

„Wow, wow, wow!" Damon yells, with his hand extending, motioning to David to calm down. „Dave, old man! What the hell are you talking about?"

„She's my sister, Damon! My sister!" he screams.

Damon closes his mouth on the spot. He takes a look at the man who's holding Bonnie and recognizes him. Oscar, the man who lead him last night to David's office and the same man who was driving Alice this afternoon from Sam's.

„Look, let me explain-"

„Shut up, Damon!" David cuts him off. His eyes are red, and full of rage and he's breathing heavily.

„If things were different, I wouldn't mind! But, not after what happened to Melanie!"

Damon looks at him like he's grown two heads.

„What are you talking about? What does Mel have to do anything with your sister?"

„Because that's what you do, Damon! You make women trust you, and then you turn your back on them in the most vicious way possible! That's what happened with Mel, and that's the reason why she's dead right now!"

Damon's face suddenly changes into very serious and anger full. Melanie's death was a sore subject for him and the fact that David and everybody else were bringing it up again, meant everyone still believed it was his fault for what happened to her.

„I cared about her." he says through his greeted teeth. The man in the suit looks at his wide eyes. „I never would have hurt her if it weren't-" he stops abruptly, his voice skipping and almost choking on his own anger.

„What? If it weren't for me?" David asks. „After all these years, you're still the only one who blames me for her death, when it was all you!"

„I don't want anything with Ali!" Damon spits out of his mouth, desperate to change the subject. „You want to blame someone on who started this thing between me and her, you blame it on her! I didn't come here for that."

„Why did you come here, Damon?" David asks, suddenly calmed, almost too calmed, which makes Damon worry a little, especially when the man looks over to Bonnie.

He turns and steps closer, stopping right in front of her. He eyes the man who's holding Bonnie and gives him a subtle nod, insinuating to let her go.

She suspiciously observes the stranger in front of her, who's smiling widely to her.

„I don't think we were properly introduced." He says politely, taking her hand and kissing it gently. „David Finch."

Bonnie snatches her palm out of his hand and refuses to speak. She just glares angrily at the man.

„Cat got your tongue, darling?" he asks her mockingly.

„I'm not your darling." She answers him with a low voice.

His smile spreads.

„Tell me then, how are things with your memories? Was Sam able to help you with it?"

Her eyes widen. How the hell does he know about her memories?

„Don't look so surprised, dear. I thought Sam told you how things function in this town. I am the master of all." He says spreading his hands, making a scene about it, while Bonnie rolls her eyes at him.

„Nobody comes into my town, that I know nothing of." He steps closer and leans in her face. „You outta be careful, in this town even walls have ears. And they are all mine." He whispers in her ear.

„Fuck you." she pushes him of strongly with her hands on his chest, but he just laughs at her.

„Leave her alone." Damon says from behind, but David ignores him.

„I like you." He directs his eyes to Bonnie. „You got sass and class, something that a lot of women miss these days. Too bad you're wasting your precious time on a lowlife vampire like Damon. Let me give you a piece of advice. The closer you get to him, the worse your fate will be."

„Get away from me." She tells him through gritted teeth.

„Did I scare you?" he asks innocently. „Oh, sorry, didn't mean to affect your fear, little witch."

He laughs at her face, while she diverts her eyes way from him.

„And you call yourself a Bennett? In my time, the Bennetts were the only witches that were capable of doing some damage. No other coven stood a chance against them. You're probably a disgrace for your ancestors."

Tears appear in her eyes, thinking how he may be right. Everybody keeps calling her this powerful and skilled witch, and she can imagine doing anything out of her human abilities.

She doesn't notice the man in front of her, looking at her like he is trying to decipher something on her face. He takes a step closer to her, raising her chin so that her eyes see him. He leans closer to her face and takes a deep breath, closing his eyes. He hums dreamily, opening his eyes and that smile of his doesn't disappear from his face.

„Give me a drink." He says casually.

„Excuse me?" she tells him offensively with her arms crossed at her chest. A weird sense of disgust for this man makes her speak harsh words to him, she didn't plan to.

„Get it yourself, you imbecile."

Who does this guy think he is? She's not a maid.

He smiles viciously and stands closer to her, brushing her hair off her neck.

„Not that kind of drink." He says slowly and quietly, his eyes following the line of her neck.

She straightens herself up, standing still, her eyes wide, while he raises his hand and slides his finger from the shell of her ear to her clavicle. She doesn't move, because she doesn't know what do to.

She tries to remember a spell or something to protect herself, but her mind is blank.

She looks over at Damon, who stands in his place, looking her straight in her eyes, with an unreadable expression on his face. She shivers when the man's hand falls down to unfold her crossed arms. She obeys, letting her hands fall in the line of her body.

His face vamps out and he slowly leans closer, aiming at her neck. His canines pierce her tender skin and she screams in pain as he grabs her waist to hold her in place.

All of the sudden, Damon jumps at him, grabbing him by the neck and pushing him of off her. Her hand goes instinctively on her neck and she feels the man behind her grabbing her elbows.

Damon struggles the two men, but they get the upper hand on him, and he's on the floor, while they kick him with his feet.

David gets up on his feet and walks over to Damon, stopping the two men kicking him, so he leans down grabbing him by the collar of his shirt and practically spitting in his face.

„I should have killed you when I had a chance, you unworthy piece of shit!"

Bonnie manages to kick in the stomach the guy holding her elbow, Oscar, and he stumbles behind kicking down a lamp and a phone off the night table. She tries to run over to Damon.

One of the guys grab her, but she tries to struggle him off. He slaps her hard on the face and she falls on the floor from the punch.

„Bonnie!" Damon yells and grabs David by the head striking his own forehead on the other man's nose.

David grabs his bleeding nose, falling backward on his back. Damon gets up and quickly snaps the neck one of the vampires, while the other one attacks him from the back.

Bonnie sobers up and jumps on her feet, kicking David on his nose once again and grabbing a vase to smash it on the head of the vampire who's choking Damon. He frees himself from his arms and turns around just in time to see Oscar heading to Bonnie.

Damon flashes over to him and pushes his hand in the man's chest while looking straight in his eyes. He turns his hand in his chest while the vampire screams.

„ I never liked a snitch." Damon tells him smirking and pulls his heart out of his chest.

He turns around to see Bonnie looking at him in shock, as he grabs her quickly, to flash them out of the room to his car.

* * *

 _Saturday 07:00 p.m._

„Maybe we should sleep it off." Damon suggests, sitting in the driver's seat of his car, parked in a small dark alley.

After managing to escape the motel, they tried to get out of town as soon as possible. Unfortunately, David had police barricades on every road that lead out of town. So, after driving around aimlessly, they decided to take different measures to get themselves out of this mess.

„And let them catch us in our sleep?" Bonnie sighs, keeping her eyes on the grimoire in front of her. „Let's just wait for Sam to call."

His eyes look over at her and he observes the wound on her neck and the clean white shirt she has on. She changed it cause the last one was stained with her blood.

But, the shirt wasn't Damon's concern, it was her neck that was bothering him. It wasn't bleeding anymore, but the scar is still visible. David is a man with a number of years of vampire experience and he knows how to feed properly.

But, with Bonnie, he wasn't paying attention. He left a messy bite scar, which means he did it just to hurt her more.

„Do you want me to heal that for you?" he asks her not moving his eyes from her wound.

She drifts her eyes to him and sees the remorse on his face.

„No. I'm fine." She says quickly and covers her neck with her hair.

He nods not satisfied with her answer but turns his head straight ahead. His phone rings and he fishes it out of his pocket and glancing at the screen answers it.

„Sam. Talk to me."

„ _There are guards on every road that leads out of town. This is a very big problem for you, Damon."_

„Can you help us?"

The witch on the other line exhales deeply, and he can practically see her rolling her eyes and running a nervous hand through her long red hair.

„ _Uh...I'm not sure I should."_

„Sam! Com'on! If not for me, do it for Bonnie."

She hesitates with her answer. He knows how Sam is and when there's a fellow witch involved, she would do anything to protect her kind.

 _„Fine. Put her on."_

He quickly puts the phone down, pressing the speaker on, so that it would be easier for them to follow her instructions.

„ _Bonnie, you there?"_

The girl in the question closes the grimoire and sets it down in her lap, turning her body towards Damon, who's holding the phone between them.

„Yes, I'm here."

„ _Good. Now, I have an idea how to help you, but you need to listen to me. Okay?"_

* * *

 _Don't let the fear control you._

 _Take things into your own hands._

 _Find yourself._

Yeah, easier said than done.

How are you suppose to find something that you don't know how it looks like? That fear, Sam was talking about is a feeling, not some tactile part of her body. She can't just find it attached to her leg or something and just rip it off of her.

She doesn't know how is it possible for her to be so afraid that she actually replaced her memories. She must've been so scared. She was facing her own death. Is it normal for something like that to happen? Sam says that for humans, it happens more than you can think of. But, for witches... not really.

The only time she remembers being so afraid is when she was six years old. She and Matt watched 'Chucky' on his cable and he kept telling her that the serial killer puppet was real. Needless to say, she got rid of every doll she had in her house.

But, this is different. This isn't her childhood friend telling her scary stories. This is real.

Her hands start to shake. Her palms are sweaty and they're leaving damp prints all over the grimoire she's been reading. Her eyes are practically bulging out of her sockets and her lips feel dry like sandpaper.

A cold sweat starts pulling out of her. Her breathing becomes short and somewhat hiccuped intakes of air.

„ _Bonnie?"_

That voice brings her back to present. She looks around herself in confusion, noticing the grimoire on her lap and recognizing the familiar scent of leather seats in Damon's car.

She looks to the side at the man sitting beside her on the driver's seat. He raises his eyebrows at her.

„Are you alright?" he asks her and she notices that is not the voice she heard calling her name. She swallows hard and nods her head at him.

„ _Damon, is something wrong?"_

And there is that voice again. She finally looks down between her and Damon and sees the cell phone he's holding in his hand.

„Yeah, Sam. Everything's fine. She just drifted off a little." He talks into the device.

„ _Can we proceed then? You don't have much time."_

„Yeah, sure. Sorry." Bonnie apologizes.

„ _It's fine. Listen, we need to do this quickly. So, I'll tell you the spell and you repeat after me. You're gonna feel a light headache but you have to hold on. I need to have access to your mind. Once I get it, I can do what I want to get you guys out of town. Do you think you can handle it?"_

„Yeah, yeah. I can."

„ _You should have in mind that it will take a lot of your strength, once I enter your head. So, I need you to pull every ounce of your strength and let me do what I have to do. Can you do that, Bonnie?"_

Way to kick a girl when she's down. Like it's not enough she gets called a chicken afraid of her own shadow, but now she wants her to be brave and strong. One doesn't go with the other.

Her mouth dries out again, and her palms start to sweat all over. She can't seem to speak, because she doesn't know if she can actually do this.

„ _Bonnie?"_

„She can do it, Sam." Damon answers instead, making Bonnie look at him with her eyes wide. „She can." He reassures her with a nod.

* * *

 _Saturday 07:35 p.m._

He ends the call and tucks his phone in his pocket. The spell seems to have gone the way it should. Sam had access to Bonnie's mind and she could get them out of town before anything else happens. He just hopes it's soon.

„You alright?" he eyes Bonnie sitting calmly in her seat, her hands folded in front of her.

She nods lightly, not sure how she feels about everything.

„What if I can't?" she asks all of a sudden, turning her head to look at him. „What if I don't have enough strength? What if can't hold on?"

„You already are." He assures her. „Sam managed to do what she wanted, now it's all on her. You don't have to worry."

„Right." She sighs „It's just, you're so calm. You're like really sure it's gonna work."

„ Because it will. She's gonna use your own powers to hide our appearance so that we can get the hell out of dodge. You got nothing to worry about. I've seen her do this all the time. She's good."

Somehow his words calm her down. He seems to have a lot of faith in Sam and it makes her think of the history he shares with her. And not just with her, but with everybody else. The words David told her are stuck in her head, along with Alice's behavior towards her.

She was..nice to her, even though Bonnie was rude. She knew she had no reason to be like that to the woman, because she doesn't even know her, but something about her just bugged her in a wrong way.

„Are you gonna tell me who Melanie is?" she asks after a couple of minutes of silence.

„No." He answers coldly and quickly.

She raises her look to him.

„Don't you think I deserve to know something? I mean, there is an army of vampires hunting us down, at least I have a right to know why!"

„They're hunting us down because that snitch Oscar told David about me and Alice. And it's not an army. Just a crazy bunch." He says trying to lighten up the situation.

Bonnie exhales and snorts in frustration. His words remind her again whose fault it all is.

„Well, if you would think with your head, we weren't in this situation." She mumbles under her breath.

He turns to her frowning. She talks to her chin like he's not supposed to hear that, but she knows that as a vampire he has an excellent hearing. So, in some way, she wants him to know just how she blames him.

But before he comments on that and defends himself, something else catches his attention. Her words don't seem to blame only him for the situation, but somebody else, too. Somebody, to whom she's been very rude, even though the woman didn't do anything to her.

„What is it with you and Alice? Why does she bother you so much?"

„She doesn't." Bonnie defends herself. „She's just..." She shuts her mouth abruptly and puts her palm on her forehead, leaning her elbow on the handholder on her door.

„What?" he asks tiredly.

„Nothing." She tells stubbornly.

„Speak." He practically growls.

„Well, she's pretty and you let her mess with your head because she has a skirt on!" she yells looking at him angrily.

In the first second, he's confused. All this time, Bonnie has been weird about Alice and he doesn't understand why can't she just accept the woman.

Yes, she a vampire, but that didn't seem to be the reason Bonnie's been so snippy about her.

And then...it hits him. He observes her face, twitching in irritation, eyes settled in front of her, mouth closed in a straight line.

He looks at her with wide eyes. He tilts his head on the side and a smirk appears on his face.

„You're jealous?" he says it like a question, but it was more like a statement.

„What?" she asks outrageously, her eyes casting him a quick glance and then turning straight forward, rolling them and frowning. „No! You're crazy! Why would I be jealous of her?! God, you are completely off your mind! She means nothing to me. Like, absolutely nothing! I don't even care she exists! Hell, I don't even know she exists! Pff! Jealous!"

She turns her head completely away from him, looking out of the window. She seems too defensive about it and it evidently reveals the truth. A smile spreads on Damon's face, as she shakes her head and snorts, like what he just said is the most ridiculous thing she has ever heard.

„You are. You're jealous of Alice." he grins in satisfaction.

„Shut up! I'm not!" she yells nervously.

He turns his body to hers and enjoys how she squirms on her seat.

„You have no idea what you're talking about!" she yells, her eyes blinking rapidly and hands flying around her.

„You are so jealous!" he singsongs just to frustrate her more.

„I'm not!"

„You are!"

„No, I'm not! Stop it!" she widens her eyes at him angrily.

„The only way I'll stop is if you admit it!" he says with a devilish smile on his face.

She opens her mouth to say something, but she overthinks it and she knows it's true. He will torture her for the rest of their trip with this.

So, she sighs and closes her eyes in defeat.

„Fine! So, she bothers me! A little!" she looks at his smug face expression. „But not for the reason you think. You left me last night all alone because of her!"

The smile slowly disappears from his face when she mentions last night.

„You abandoned me, so you can go and have a nice time with her! And now, we are in all this mess because of it! So, I think I have a right to be bothered by her, don't you think?"

„I didn't leave you to go and have fun with her." he tells her honestly. „I went to see David and she popped out somewhere in between."

„Look, you don't need to say anything. I get it. She's your old girlfriend or lover or whatever..."

„It's not like that." He assures her. „Alice is an old friend. Yeah, I got sidetracked with her, but that doesn't mean I forgot all about you. I am sorry for last night-"

„Stop apologizing for last night!" she cuts him off. „I'm really tired of listening how everybody feels bad for me, and how powerless and weak I am."

„You're not powerless and weak." He tells her with anger in his voice. „You're-"

„I am a scared little witch!" she yells in frustration. „I know! And you are all powerful, strong, cocky vampires! I can't compete with that. Especially, not in my condition."

Damon opens his mouth again at her, but she cuts him off, with pointing her finger at him.

„And don't even try to make me feel better because I am too tired of the same conversation all over again. I'm done. I just have to have enough strength to let Sam do what she has to so that she can get us out of this mess."

She ends the conversation with that. It bothers her, the inconvenience of her lack of memories and the fear that's stopping her from taking things in her hands.

„Fine." Damon tells her. „But...If you need something, all you have to do is ask."

That's when it crosses her mind. Maybe she could ask him. He would do it, no doubt about it.

Yes, at the motel room it seemed unnecessary. But, now, after all this mess, it doesn't seem like a bad idea. It even seems like just the thing that could help them.

She needs more strength, so the spell doesn't wear her down, but how do you get that if you're afraid that it just won't be enough.

Maybe, a one-time dose of vampire blood can really make that fear disappear and help Sam to get easier access to her powers.

 _Doesn't hurt to try, right?_ She asks herself. _What can go wrong?_

* * *

 _Friday 07:47 p.m._

„Hey, I deserve to be treated better!" Damon yells pointing at himself, „I may be a vampire, but I still have feelings!" he screams throwing his arms in the air. „And doing this! ... here..." with every word he gets quieter. „in a smelly place like this... makes me fell cheap."

„Ooh, give me a break!" Bonnie yells and laughs. „You're acting like a child! No!" She points a finger on him. „Like a virgin! You're acting like some teenage virgin! What do you want? You want special?!" she throws her hand around her. „What? You want candles lighted around? A freaking Persian rug? Maybe some wine?"

„Hey! No need to be mean about it!"

She rolls her eyes again and sighs, „You know what? Forget it! Just forget it!" she says and turns to get back on her side of the car.

„Maybe I'll ask Stefan when we get back!"

Her steps echo in his head loudly as she turns her back on him.

„Wait!" it doesn't take him long to change his mind.

Something stung inside his chest when she mentioned asking Stefan. Of course, it was jealousy. He was, after all, that predictable. The jealousy he felt towards his brother was manifesting in all ways possible.

Stefan always got what he wanted. He got Katherine, he got Elena and now Bonnie was suggesting he was once again the better choice. Why did they always go for his brother? What exactly does he have that Damon doesn't?

Sure, he was the good, nice guy, but what do people say? Good girls like bad boys. Whoever said that and whomever Damon believed it, needed to get his head plastered. Sure, Damon had girls, lots of them, but the ones he wanted, never wanted him back.

And now, somehow, Bonnie Bennett came to the list. He wanted her before his brother got to her. Sure, it wasn't in a romantic sense, bit it still burned his ego to know Bonnie wanted Stefan to give her vampire blood.

Not a chance.

She turns her green eyes to look at him in a questioning frown, as he rolls his and exhales frustratingly.

„Fine. We'll do it here." He says quietly.

„You know what? No need. It's probably a bad idea anyway." Bonnie says tiredly and turns her back on him again.

„I said: We'll do it." Damon answers her in a low voice, making the air thicker between them. Bonnie slowly turns to face him again, noticing his face dangerously observing her. His eyes watch her closely and predatorily and he slowly makes his way to her like a lion sneaks to a dear.

A cold shiver runs through Bonnie's body and she can feel the tension around them. In such little time, Damon completely turned the tables on her and she can't seem to move from her spot.

„You want this? Fine. I don't have a problem with it. I wanted to make it easier and more comfortable to you, but if it's fine for you, it's even more fine with me. If you think you can handle it, then come on."

He stands directly in front of her with an extended hand in front of him, taunting her to accept it, which she does. With her head held up high.

He pulls her close to him, holding her palm in his hand and his other hand around her waist.

„But...we do this my way...on my terms... I call the shots."

Bonnie swallows hard and nods. Somewhere in her head passes a thought that maybe this wasn't a really good idea, but it was too late for her to back down now.

He leads her to his side of the car, and she leans her back on the door, crossing her arms over her chest, watching him curiously, as he removes his leather jacket off, leaving him in a black v neck t-shirt.

He tosses the jacket on the hood of his car and shakes his head, brushing his fingers through his thick hair. She diverts her look to the floor when he aims his eyes to hers.

Something about those blue orbs makes her feel unprotected, exposed.

He takes a step closer to her and without a word starts unbuttoning her white shirt.

„What are you doing?" she asks him shocked but doesn't stop his doing.

„Drinking blood is messy." He says, with his eyes concentrating on his fingers doing the unbuttoning „We don't want to stain your shirt."

He stops redoing the buttons, letting the last ones still on, and slowly removes her shirt off her shoulders, tracing her skin delicately with his fingers. He lets the shirt hanging around her waist and hands, making it appear like she's tied down and restricted.

His hands on her feel like hard and cold sandpaper and goosebumps cover her skin. She tries to tell herself it's from the cold, but in the back of her mind, there is a small little voice telling her to imagine him undressing her under different circumstances.

His eyes fall on the white tank top, following the curves of her braless breasts, and thin waist, as he raises his look carefully on hers, but they are glued down to the pavement.

He lifts her chin with his fingers lightly, so she would look at him. She obeys without a word.

Green eyes looking straight into blue ones, and he feels certain he hears fireworks in his head. He gets a weird satisfaction of what's about to happen.

You see, if there is one thing more satisfying to a vampire than feeding on his victim than it's feeding his victim his blood. Not to mention, feeding a witch his blood. It's an unusual web of pleasure, power, delight and danger. It's personal on so many levels and he can't help it but feel a little greedy too. Greedy of her attention, that is, and that's entirely on him right now.

„Okay. Now listen to me. You need to do this exactly how I say...you got that?" he says in a tone that is determent, but also caring and soft.

She looks at him with her wide eyes, waiting for his instructions.

„I will bite into my wrist, and the moment I do, you need to start drinking immediately."

He widens his eyes so she would get this seriously.

„Also, you're gonna have to suck on it lightly, so the blood doesn't stop flowing. Repeat the motion, every time you feel the rush of blood slowing down. I heal quickly, so it's important you keep drawing the blood at all time, so the wound doesn't close itself."

She nods rapidly, and he stops everything, giving her a chance to understand what they're doing.

„How long do I have to drink it?" she asks in a very quiet, small voice.

„Don't worry about that. I'll let you know when it's enough."

Her eyes look over his shoulder, rethinking all that happened. She feels a strange weakness and Sam in her head. The constant pull from the other witch is tearing her down and at moments she feels like she's gonna pass out.

Damon stands in front of her, eyeing her carefully. He can almost see the fast wheels turning in her head, overwhelming her with a sense of obligation and the fear surfacing from it. His palm cover her warm cheek as he whispers his words of advice to her.

„Breathe, Bonnie. Don't think, just breathe."

She exhales deeply when he removes his hand from her face, missing the cool feeling of it.

She shivers when he raises his other hand to his mouth and his face transforms into a monster like. She looks at his red eyes, veins beneath them and his canines peeking from his mouth.

He stops his movement, letting her take a good look at him and adjusting to it. He waits for her to start breathing again, when she nods, repeating his words.

„Breathe." She says in a whisper, closing her eyes for a moment.

She opens her eyes again and sees him putting his wrist against his face, his mouth opening wide, and his fangs sinking in his wrist, the piercing of his skin audibly loud in a forgotten, quiet alley. He groans as he bites, and practically tears of the wrist from his mouth, letting the wound increase the blood flow.

In a very fast motion, he pushes his wrist against her lips, as the metallic taste attacks her mouth. Her first reflex is to close her mouth, cringing at the taste, her hand grabbing his wrist and pushing it away from her.

Damon, being physically stronger, doesn't let her deny it, and pushes roughly his wrist in her mouth, once again.

„Drink." He orders in a low, dangers voice.

Her face wrinkles again, but he feels her teeth tight around his wrist, as she holds on his hand like on dear life.

His other hand is gripping the roof of the car strongly, and he pushes himself roughly on her. The moment he does, he feels her sucking on his wrist lightly.

His eyes search for something all over her face, and he lets the sight consume him. Her eyes are wide open, looking straight at him, he can see the muscles of her cheeks contract every time she withdraws his blood, as the skin around her mouth is smudged with his blood.

He tries to straighten himself up, as he closes his eyes, focusing his ears on any sound, beside the one she is producing while gulping his blood and the heavy intakes of breath she takes.

He picks on a slow music and a soft voice playing in some restaurant on the other side of the street. He hears the chatting and comments in the background from the guests of the restaurant, but he focuses his ears on the song. It's easy and soft, with a saxophone following the voice of a female singer.

His eyes look over to Bonnie, while the music is still playing in his head. Her eyes are closing , and her breathing is decreasing, as well as the number of gulps she takes.

He retracts his wrist from her mouth, and her mouth falls open, as her eyes look tiredly at him. He uses his other hand to hold on her waist, pressing his fingers tightly against her shirt covered hip, and pushing his body on hers, to hold her limp body against the car.

His free hand falls down with his body, as he feels the healing process of his wrist already starting.

He sees the whiteness of her teeth stained with a crimson color of his juice, and her mouth, cheeks, and chin smeared with blood.

Following the line of her neck, he sees the blood drops from her mouth, going down her neck into her cleavage, creating straight lines, staining her white tank top with thin droplets of the red fluid.

He catches a drop sliding down at the middle of her neck and drags his point finger up her chin, stopping at her mouth.

She's breathing heavily and small, and her eyelids are practically closed, but when she feels his finger on her lips, her tongue snakes out to lick it. He groans at the sensation, pressing his already hard member against her thigh.

He doesn't know which one of them is more in a trance right now. She's high from his blood, that is safely saved in her stomach, flowing her veins, combining his vampire essence with her witch blood.

He enjoys the satisfaction of his blood inside hers, her mind blurred and drugged, and he has to hold her tightly, so she won't fall from the vigor that his blood has over hers.

He removes the finger from her mouth, and her eyes open up a little as if she is searching for the missing digit.

„Damon..." she whispers in a foggy, weak voice, her eyes searching for his face, settling on his lips, as she seems to move an inch closer to him. The motion takes a lot of her effort and her eyelids close, but her tongue slips out and licks her blood covered lips.

He reads it as an invitation, and he brings his face closer to hers, watching her mouth trying to make up words, but no sound escaping.

His tongue peeks out to lick her blood stained skin right next to her lips. She closes her eyes and inches closer to him. He's just about to catch her lips in a searing kiss when her head falls back, and her whole body goes limp in his hands.

She starts to fall down as he sobers up for a moment, catching her body from the fall and holding it in his arms. Her head is hanging to the back, her face directed up in the sky.

„Bonnie." He calls her, grabbing the back of her head, lifting it up and directing it to his face, shaking it lightly.

„Bonnie. Hey, Bonnie." He tries again.

Her eyes seem like they are glued together and her jaw falls down open. Her body is relaxed and heavy in his arms, and he has to blink several times to get himself cool-headed.

He backs up from the press of her body, letting her go for a moment, as a test if she can stand by herself. Her body starts sliding down against the car, and he catches her again, stopping it from the fall.

He shakes his head and snorts, with a self-mocking laugh escaping him. The girl just passed out in his hands, and he read her cry for help as her arousal and a call for him to molest her mouth with his.

 _Great going, Damon!_

He mentally pats himself mockingly on his back and lets out a frustrated breath.

„All right." he says defeatedly.

He picks Bonnie's powerless body and throws her over his shoulder, walking over to the other side of the car. He opens the passenger door and sets down the witch carefully on the seat.

He walks over to the trunk and gets a bottle of water and some wipes from it. He walks over to her again, kneels down next to her, and starts cleaning her face and neck from the half-dried blood.

When he's done, he lifts her shirt back on her shoulders, covering the stained tank top, and buttons it up. He lowers her seat so that she is practically laying down. He takes one last look at the sleeping witch and closes the door.

He swiftly catches his jacket from the hood of the car and gets behind the wheel.

Just then, his phone rings and he already knows who it is.

„She's fine." He says answering the phone.

„ _The spell's done. You can leave town. No one will see you."_

Sam's tone is harsh and casual, but he doesn't dwell on it.

„Thanks." He shortly answers.

„ _Once she passed out, it was a piece of cake to get access to her mind."_

„Haa."

The silence on the other end doesn't sound good. He knows Sam and her opinion, and he knows he has to hear it.

„Guess, you saw the show?" he asks her finally.

„ _Not your smartest move. But, then again, when have you ever done anything smart?"_

„You just said it helped."

„ _I don't like the fact I entered that poor girl's mind and I even less like the fact I was a witness of this perverted act you just did."_

„Hey, it was her decision. You can't argue with that."

„ _It was her decision. But, something made her do it. I got a sneaking suspicion you put that in her head."_

He hates her insinuation, he knows the meaning behind those words.

„I gave a suggestion, yes. You know it was smart, too."

„ _Don't think, just because you helped her now, it will change anything. I still have access to her mind, Damon. She may be weak now, and you can try to take advantage of it , but that strong and vampire hating witch is still in her. And, I wouldn't like to be in your skin, once she remembers the tonight's event."_

„Trust me, I already did even worse to her," he says, observing the sleeping witch next to him.

„ _Then, don't involve yourself with her more than you already did. She's a good girl, Damon. And I know you care about her. But, you cared about Mel, too, and look where that got her. I'd hate to see the same thing happened to Bonnie."_

His eyes squint, feeling an awful kick from her words.

„Are you ever gonna stop blaming me for that?" he asks her defensively.

„ _I don't know, Damon. Are you?"_

Of course, he doesn't answer her. But then again, they both know the answer to it.

 _„Hurry up and leave town. I can only give you limited time to get out. I'll text you the details."_

„Goodbye, Sam."

„ _Bye."_

As the line cuts, he starts the engine and drives them out of town. It's time to get the hell away from all this.

* * *

 _Sunday 06:04 a.m._

Her eyelids are white. White and bright. She opens her eyes, squinting at the bright sight of the sun. It's hitting her straight in her face and making her eyelids appear almost see through.

Her neck is in an awkward position and when she straightens it up, she hisses and her hand grabs it and starts rubbing it soothingly. She tries to sit up in hear seat but fails, when she notices the back support is lowered down.

She manages to sit up, grabs the back support, pulling it strongly with her hands and trying to push it up, but fails again.

„...ther side of the sea..." She jumps at the mumbling by her left side. She sits up straighter and looks at the driver. Damon's looking straight on the road and the sun is brightly hitting his face. His eyes are covered with a pair of black shades, that fit him perfectly.

„What?" she asks. Her ears are pulsating still and the sounds seem muffled, so she barely hears herself talk.

„The handle is on the other side of your seat." Damon says again, not looking at her. He notices she doesn't move, so when he looks at her, she's wearing a questioning expression.

„The handle to put your seat back up is-" he starts talking, but she shakes her head in confusion and cuts off his words.

„Did you say something?!" she practically yells at him. He backs up a little automatically and looks back on the road. He takes off his sunglasses and sets his eyes on her again.

She's looking around herself and trying to pull the seat back up, but she keeps falling back because the car's moving. He tries to tell her again but notices she doesn't hear him at all, so he rolls his eyes, taking one last look at the road, grabbing the steering wheel with his left hand and reaching over her with his right hand.

She jerks and her eyes widen when the fingers of his hand brush against her jeans and he snatches something on the side of her door. The back support goes up and she yelps a little in surprise.

He retracts his hand and continues to drive with no word. She looks around herself and finally sees they are on a free road, driving. They're heading home. She shakes her head and uses her pinky finger to open up her ears. She even tries to open wide and close her mouth a couple of times.

When nothing seems to help, she sits back in her seat and looks out of the window. They're driving through the woods and the road is surprisingly empty. The sun is just getting up, which means it's early in the morning.

She tries to remember what happened last night and when exactly did they left Ellicott City, that she didn't seem to notice.

She remembers David and his gorillas and the horrible fight at the motel room. She remembers how they couldn't get out of town because his men were waiting for them on every road that led out.

She remembers then the spell Sam did and she wonders if they're still under it. Her eyes are starting to clear up and she can hear the engine working. It's still dimly, but she can make out the sounds better.

„Did Sam's spell worked?" she asks Damon.

His eyes are on the road and under the shades again, so she can't see them.

„Yeah." He answers shortly.

„Are we still under it?"

He shrugs. „Not anymore." He says.

She looks back at the window. The spell must have stopped when she fell asleep, but considering she doesn't remember when that happened, she doesn't understand how were they able to leave without anybody noticing.

„Sam says hi." Damon interrupts her thoughts. She looks at him confused, but his face is straight turned to the road. „She says the cloaking stopped when we passed Columbia Pike."

„Oh." She exhales. She remembers Sam trying to get access to her mind and doing a spell that made them invisible, so when she fell asleep, Sam must've continued to hold the cloak under them.

„Where are we now?" she asks him.

„We just passed Occoquan River a few minutes ago. We're heading to Woodbridge."

„When did we left Ellicott City?"

„Around 4 a.m. Sam had a problem with David, who came to her house, to get her to do a locator spell on us. So, we had to wait for her to get rid of him. I just drove around town."

„Is she okay?"

„Yeah, everything's fine. She gave him a wrong lead, but we had to be careful. So, we waited."

„How come I don't remember any of that?"

„You fall asleep around 8 o'clock. I didn't want to wake you."

„I slept the entire time?" she asks with her eyes wide.

He looks at her with a side look and clears his throat.

„Pretty much."

„But how did I fall asleep so easily? I mean, Sam was holding the spell the entire time! She saved us and risked her own ass, while I was sleeping!"

„It was only for a couple of hours." Damon reasons her.

„I'm soo horrible." She exhales hard. „And my head is killing me." She says rubbing her forehead. „You got some Aspirin?"

„There's buffet and a 24 hours store at the side of the road nearby. We'll look for an Aspirin there. We'll be there in 10 minutes."

* * *

And indeed, 10 minutes later they're parking in front of the diner. She gets out of the car, same time Damon does and starts walking towards the front door. She enters alone, while Damon tells her he'll go at the store look for some Aspirin.

She sits down at the booth, grabs the menu and a nice chubby waitress approaches her with an empty mug that she sets down on the table in front of Bonnie.

„Good morning, dear!" the waitress greets her. „Coffie?" she asks her motioning the coffee container in her hands.

„Yes, please." Bonnie tells her politely. The women pours her the hot coffee in the mug. She reads the name tag of the waitress, Jasmine. She's a middle-aged redhead, with a light yellow dress on and a white apron over it. Her hair is scooped up in a bun, with her bangs neatly done over her forehead.

„What can I get you, hun'?" Jasmine asks her, dropping the coffee on the table and getting a writing pad and a pen out of her right pocket.

Bonnie scans her eyes over the menu looking for the specials.

„I'll have...some French toast with butter and honey on the side, eggs Benedict with Canadian bacon and swiss cheese on top and two servings of crepes with whipped cream and strawberry sauce." She ends with a smile, while the waitress writes it all down.

„All right. Will that be all, dear?" she asks her.

Bonnie smiles at the sweet names the women calls her and sets the menu back at his place.

„A glass of orange juice, please." She folds her hands nicely in front of her on the table. „And keep that coffee coming."

Jasmine points the pen jokingly at her, ant shoves the writing pen in her pocket. „You got it, doll." She picks up the coffee container and leaves the table.

Bonnie takes a few sips of the coffee and looks around her. The dinner is practically empty, which is not a surprise, cause the clock on the wall says it 6:20 a.m. She waits for Damon to get here from the store, but he's taking longer than she thought.

She thinks about texting Sam to thank her for everything she's done for them, but decides against it, not wanting to cause problems for her. Maybe she'll call her once the dust has settled.

She stands up from the booth and turns around to look for the restroom. She walks over to the door, smiling at Jasmine, that's standing over at the counter, pouring coffee in the mug of a customer that's sitting there.

Once at the restroom, she stands in front of the mirror, after washing her hands in some lavender soap. She takes a look at the mirror and presses her palms under her eyes. She splashes some cold water on her face and runs a hand through her hair.

She turns herself watching her appearance in the reflection when something catches her attention. The buttons of her shirt are misplaced and the higher buttons are done even though she specifically remembers she left them undone.

She frowns and undoes her shirt, letting it fall open. She starts to rebutton it, but she notices something on her tank top. She stands closer to the mirror, trying to detect what could it possibly be. She lowers her look and sees thin straight lines on her cleavage. They look brown or maybe even dark red. They seem as some drops but she doesn't remember staining it.

She locks the restroom door and takes off the tank top, putting on just her white shirt and buttoning it properly. She inspects the tank top in her hands and frowns remembering something.

 _A flash of man's fingers unbuttoning her shirt, touch of man's hand on her lips, and the taste of blood in her mouth._

 _'Drink'_

 _She hears the ordering voice in her head and remembers the wet feeling all over her chin and neck. She subconsciously runs a hand down her neck and recalls the feeling of a strong body pushed roughly on hers._

 _A smell of bourbon and strong cologne hits her nose in memory and she closes her eyes, that hot feeling hitting her body again and the arousing heat rushes through her from head to toe._

She opens her eyes and takes a deep breath. What the hell happened last night? Did she drink Damon's blood? She remembers him offering at the motel room, but the rest of it is foggy. She knows it's because of Sam and the spell still having an affect on her, but she feels confused by the flashbacks and the way her own body reacted.

She tosses the tank top in the trash, getting herself to stand straight. She opens the door and walks over to the booth she was sitting at. She can see Damon is finally there with his back turned on her and some of her food is waiting for her at the table.

Just as she approaches the booth Jasmine brings her a plate of eggs Benedict and places it in front of her seat. She thanks her quietly and sits down. Damon looks at her curiously.

He sets a bottle of some pills in front of her.

„They didn't have Aspirin, so I got you some Ibuprofen. It's basically the same."

She takes the bottle and removes the cap off. „Thanks." She says shortly and takes two pills, shoves them in her mouth and downs them with a big sip of orange juice.

She takes the fork and knife that are folded in a napkin and looks at the food in front of her. She takes a large bite of the crapes and then grabs the french toast, putting the butter on and spreading the honey over it.

She raises her to look over to Damon who watches her amusingly.

„What?" she asks with her mouth full.

„Someone's hungry." He comments on the food at the table.

„And you're not?" she asks him, before taking a large bite of the eggs in her mouth, chewing on it and savoring the taste. She takes a big sip of the coffee and continues to chew.

„Well, when Jasmine started bringing the food over I thought you were decent enough to order the both of us." He says with a smirk on his face. „But, I can see now.. you're just greedy."

Bonnie takes the fork in her hand and tells him. „I'm hungry." She raises her hand to her mouth so nothing gets out from the talking and chewing at the same time.

Damon reaches his hand over to her french toast but she snatches his hand away.

„I also don't share my food." She says sternly, and Damon widens his eyes and backs up a little. He smiles deviously at her possessions and questions himself if she's like that with everything.

He likes that side of her, and can't remember if he ever saw it before. True, she is loyal and protective over the people she loves, but this is a little selfish side of her and he can't help it but like it.

The waitress steps over to their table and sets a mug in front of Damon.

„Everything alright, doll?" she asks Bonnie, while she refills her and Damon's coffee.

„Oh, yes. Thank you." Bonnie tells her, wiping her mouth with a napkin. „Can I ask you something? Would you bring my friend over here some pancakes?" she asks her sweetly, while Damon furrows his brows.

„Sure thing, darling." The women look over at Damon „Would you like them with some syrup, fruit, nuts or chocolate chip?"

„Well, Jasmine..." he tells her politely. „Chocolate chip would be perfect."

„Coming right up, handsome."

Bonnie continues to devour her food in front of her, not wanting to stop until she feels the strength getting back in her. Jasmine brings the pancakes to Damon, to which he thanks her with one of his gorgeous smiles.

Bonnie wants to ask him about last night, but she doesn't know how to approach the subject. She starts fidgeting the food on the plate, and her bites become smaller and number lower.

„What's up with you?" Damon asks her when he notices that she's been throwing him some looks and opening her mouth like she's gonna say something but nothing ever comes out.

She looks at him questioningly, like she has no idea what he's talking about.

„I can see your gloomy face. Spit it out!" he explains.

She exhales and raises her eyes to his.

„What happened last night?" she asks him.

„I told you, you fell asleep." He says not stopping to eat.

„I mean...with the..." she stops because she doesn't know how to call it. „Did you fed me your blood?" she finally says.

Damon stops the chewing and raises his look to her like he's trying to read something of her face, but her expression is readless to him.

They just observe themselves in silence, measuring each other up.

Once again, green eyes on blue eyes in a staring contest.

The food around them getting cold.

Time passes by them in slow motion.

The moment breaks when they hear the radio turn on. Damon looks over his shoulder and sees Jasmine fiddling with the radio, and turning the volume up once on the station.

He exhales and looks back at Bonnie.

„We shouldn't discuss this in here." He tells her finally.

„Excuse me?" she asks him.

„I said we shouldn't-"

„I heard what you said!" she tells him a little louder, cutting him midsentence.

He throws her a warning look and she leans closer to him over the table.

„That would mean there is something to discuss." She says angrily, but quietly.

„What are you getting so upset about?" he asks her whispering, reading her anger of her face. „It was your idea."

Bonnie snorts. „No, it wasn't! You suggested it. I said yes because I needed more strength for Sam's spell." she whispers. „You practically took advantage of me!" she accuses him.

Damon frowns at her. „Now you're just making stuff up."

„I'm not making anything up. You had no right to do that to me."

„What exactly did I do to you?" now he was getting angry.

„I don't know! Because I don't remember! I just know I found blood on my tank top and my shirt was misbuttoned. It says enough to me, to know you violated me."

„Oh, please!" Damon sighs. He sets down the fork and pushes the plate away from him."If anybody was violated there, it was me." He mumbles to himself.

„What's that suppose to mean?"

„Nothing. Look, nothing happened. You drank a little blood and fell asleep after it. That's it. We removed your shirt not to stain it, but I was a gentleman so I didn't remove your tank top."

„And what else happened?"

„What else could have happened? Why are you so keen on the fact that something else did happen? I thought you said you don't remember it."

„I don't. I just have to be sure."

She leans back in her seat and crosses her arms over her chest, while he drags his plate of pancakes back and starts eating them again.

„You know, you should stop with the memory losses, it's becoming quite inconvenient on me, Bennett." He tells her bitterly.

„On you? I lose my memories and replace my entire life wth some other type of alternative, and it's inconvenient to you? What kind of self-centered assface are you?"

„Best one in the country, apparently."

* * *

When they leave the dinner it's already past 7 in the morning, so they have to hurry up to get back in Mystic Falls before noon. Damon's walking straight ahead of her in the parking lot, but Bonnie's steps slow down, her head spinning from all the thinking.

„Wait!" she yells after Damon, who turns around to face her.

„What?"

She sets her straight face on as she walks closer to him.

„I want you to tell me what happened last night."

„You're still on that?" he asks tiredly.

„Tell me."

„I already did."

„No, you didn't. You said we shouldn't discuss it inside. We're outside right now. So, discuss."

„Bonnie, we don't have time for this." He tells her through gritted teeth. „We gotta get back to Mystic Falls before Stefan and Elena. Do you have any idea how crazy they will get if they notice we were out of town together?"

„I'll just tell them you kidnapped me." She shrugs casually.

„Who's gonna believe you that?" he asks mockingly.

„Everybody." She says with certainty.

He rolls his eyes, knowing she's right.

„Fine. You wanna know what happened? I'll tell you. We were sitting in a car, you said you wanted to do it, so I agreed."

„Actually, you were kind of pissy about that part." She cuts him off. „I remembered that."

„Okay. But, I agreed." He shakes his head in frustration. „Anyway, I took of your shirt, you drank my blood, you got dizzy, you fell asleep. I set you in the car, cleaned you up, dress you up and we droved of out of town once Sam gave us the green light."

„That's it?" she asks frowning.

„That's it."

„Nothing more?"

„Nothing more."

He shrugs as she nods.

„Can we go now?" he asks but he's already walking away from her. He notices she's not following him, so he turns to face her again, his eyes rolling at her lack of emergency.

„What now?" he asks spreading his hands.

She stands in her place, her arms around her body, with her eyes on the ground.

„Was David right?" she asks him, raising her look to him. „Am I a disgrace for my family and my ancestors?"

„What are you talking about?"

„I mean, it keeps happening. The blanks in my memories...I suppress all of it because I am afraid of the truth. I-... I'm a chicken."

„Calm down. Look, you did a very strong spell yesterday with Sam. It was in the distance, so it's not really surprising it wore you off. You shouldn't be worried about that. Sam said it would take a lot of you."

„Yeah, but-"

„No buts!" Damon cuts her off, walking closer to her until there's just a small space separating them. He places his palm on her cheek and his eyes look directly at her.

„You are not a chicken." he tells her seriously.

It provokes a smile on her face and on his, too. She covers his hand with her own and pulls it off of her face. She raises her eyes on him, shining brightly in the morning sun.

„Look, despite everything bad that have happened this weekend, I wanted to thank you for what you did."

He shrugs his shoulders like it's not a big deal, but his chest spike with warmth a little when he hears her words.

„Don't mention it." He mumbles.

„No, really. I actually feel for the first time that this is going somewhere, you know, that I'm not just stuck at the same mind-numbing cycle. And you are the reason for it. Wheater you did it for your own benefit or something... I want you to know I appreciate it."

„Well, I just did what was needed to be done. I guess if somebody has to take credit for it, it could as well be me."

His smug eyes shoot her a look and he sees her smiling up at him.

He freezes when he notices the way she looks at him. There's that slight smile on her lips, her shining eyes and the hand that's still wrapped around his.

Something about her eyes makes him think of last night.

There's that shadow in them, the depth that pulled him in then and is doing the same thing to him right now. He takes one more step closer, his clothes brushing against hers.

He looks down at her and notices her breathing is changed, but she still has that look in her eyes.

There's a question in those green orbs of hers. One that only he knows the answer to it. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to know what it means. She wants it.

But, there's a little hesitation in him still. She is still Bonnie and if he does this it will only complicate things more.

He can screw this up.

But he can't resist the urge, more importantly, he doesn't want to. And he knows, the more he thinks about it, the more reasons he can list in the con column.

So, cursing himself in his mind, he leans down, closing his eyes and catching her lips with his own, sealing it with a gentle kiss. His hand caresses her cheek once again and Bonnie can't help herself, but to just stand there and let him kiss her.

It's brief and quick, when Damon backs up from her, opening his eyes, observing her face and trying to guess her reaction to it.

She opens her eyes slowly, finding his own and providing him the most unreadable face expression he has ever seen in a woman. It's true what they say, that women are a mystery, but he has always thought of himself as an expert for them.

Right now, he's blank.

Bonnie Bennet makes him blank.

So, he cautiously takes a step back, a frown appearing on his face, careful not to make any sudden movements. He's expecting an aneurysm, or fire caught on his ass or even a slap on the face, but nothing happens.

So, he starts to freak out. She's just standing there, unmoving, observing him.

His eyes fly over the pavement, his mind running crazy, thinking what the hell did he just did.

Did he screw this up? Maybe there''s still something he can do.

„I... -Uh...I'm-" just as he starts to talk himself out of it, he's cut off in the most surprising kind.

Bonnie launches herself on him, grabbing the collar of his shirt and pulling him down, practically throwing herself onto him. She kisses him hard and rough, with no hesitation at all.

He's so lost and surprised he doesn't even notice when she pushes him against a car behind him. His back bump on the unknown car and he willingly accepts her initiation. He grabs her waist within his arms, encircling them around her, responding to her kiss just as passionately as she is.

Ok, so maybe he didn't exatcly scew it up.

He lightly bites her lower lip and snakes his tongue over it, until she welcomes his tongue inside her mouth. One of his hands finds their way to her hair, grabbing it and messing it around, while the other is safely holding her close to him over her waist.

She puts her arms them around his neck, pressing her whole body against his.

Damon grabs the back of her head, massaging her scalp and slowing her fast moves and rough kisses.

He tilts her head to the side a little to get better access and his fingers slowly tickle the skin on her neck and jaw, while her hands slowly slide down his body, finding the hem of his shirt and creeping under it.

He shivers unveilingly, when her cold hands touch his abs, as a weird sinking feeling hits him in his stomach.

He definatly didn't screw it up.

He's in heaven. Actual living heaven.

She tastes sweet as sugar, melting like caramel on his lips. Her surprisingly cold skin feels like ice playfully being dragged on his sensitive nerve endings.

He simply can't get enough of her.

His hand that was on her waist all this time slowly starts to move down to her ass. He runs his palm down slowly over her round buttocks, her nails sinking in the rigid skin of his abdomen. He roughly grabs that perfect ass and pulls her closer on his body, feeling every inch of her soft curves against his hard anterior.

He feels her teeth againt his lower lip, grazing all over it, and it reminds him of her tasting his blood last night.

Flashes of her blood coverd mouth and dreamy sparkling eyes, with soft jazz music in the backround.

Her nervous hands, her full lips, her playfull tounge, her soft skin...

„A-AA-A-HEEM!"

The moment is rudely interputed by a loud throat clearing.

They both stop the kiss, but neither of them take a step back. Their faces are still inches apart, with lustfull eyes and uneasy breathing.

Their hands are still holding each other in a rather sinfull way, but they don't let go.

„AHEM!"

When the second throat clearing happens, they manage to take their hands off of each other.

They turn to the source of the voice, to see an unfamiliar older man standing in front of them.

He has a skeptic and irritated face expression, so he raises his eyebrows and says:

„You think, you kids can move out a little, so I can get to my car?"

The first second Damon doesn't understand what the hell is the guy talking about, but then he looks behind his back and sees he is still leaned on an old Dodge Charger.

He nods slowly and steps away from the car, letting the man enter it, with his head shaking and mumbling something like 'Kids these days!'

A kid. That's what the man calls them. Kids. As far as Damon knows, he is far from a kid, with more than a hundred and seventy years under his belt, but apparently for a moment there he was acting like one. And with Bonnie Bennett, never the less.

He watches the man get inside his car, turning the engine on and driving away. he sighs deeply as he turns to look at the witch who's shyly observing the patterns of the concrete road.

He opens his moutb to speak something but, she silently turns her back on him and walks over to his car.

Yep, he just screw it up.

* * *

 ** _Messy, messy chapter, but I hope it was worth it._**

 ** _The alley scene is finally here and I hope you liked it._**

 ** _Thank you for everything, see you next time!_**


	14. Chapter 14 - Who makes choices here?

Chapter 14 - Who makes choices here?

You know that feeling when you wake up in the morning and you just know today is gonna be a good day? Or better yet, when you wake up on a Monday and you are absolutely sure the whole week is gonna be just awesome?

That's exactly how Bonnie felt on Monday morning, right from the moment she was woken by the sound of her alarm. It was the perfect start of the perfect week. She had a chance for a fresh new start. A total cleanse of all the bad stuff and a start for something new. Something better.

So, the new and better, deserved a great outfit for the day. Because it was a very special day. She was starting school again. After being absent for almost three weeks, she was getting back in the saddle.

She was determent to start the day in a happy tone, leaving the events of yesterday and the days before, behind her.

She just needed a day to wrap her head around and decide how she would play this. After the shameless 'thing' she did with a certain handsome vampire the day before, she needed some space to breathe.

As if, the said certain handsome vampire, read her mind, he was actually letting her have her space. They haven't said a word to each other on the way back. The only thing between them was the extremely loud radio playing, which repercussions she still felt in her ears.

And after he wordlessly dropped her at the boarding house, Damon took care of Alaric and left the house in hurry. He got back late at night, while she was already tucked in her bed watching TV.

Elena was the one who gave her the suggestion to attend the school again, and she was happy for the distraction.

So, after she made order in her closet, she decided on the outfit. Grey jeans, white shirt and leather burgundy jacket. Stefan and Elena were waiting on her downstairs at the kitchen, with coffee and breakfast, but she was simply too excited to eat.

When they arrived at the school in Stefan's red Porshe, Caroline and Tyler greeted them in surprise, before they all attended the classes. Her friends were happy to help her with everything she needed.

She had math with Elena, science with Tyler, and English class with both Elena and Caroline. It was hard a little getting in step with the rest of the students, but she didn't let that bother her.

Next class was supposed to be geography, but Tyler, Elena, and Caroline had chemistry, so she felt a little bit lost, without any of them beside her. She was standing by her locker, shuffling through her books, with a bag hanging open from her shoulder when a book from her bag fell loudly on the floor.

Before she could pick it up, a boy with sandy brown hair and strong arms picked it for her. He had a blue t-shirt and jeans on, with a backpack on his shoulder. He had the sweetest smile on his lips, and his brown eyes were shining with kindness.

Jeremy handed her the book, but not before he studied the title with curiosity.

„ _Little prince?_ " he asked frowning.

„Ugh...yeah..." she stuttered, taking the book from his hands and shoving it into her bag. She dismissed it with a wave of her hand. She didn't want to admit the shameful truth, how she read it through her boring math class, and she was planning to do the same through geography.

She hurriedly shoved the books she didn't need inside the locker, closed it with a loud thud, and heard the books inside falling and bumping.

Jeremy laughed at her clumsiness and nervousness. „What class you got next?"

„Geography." She answered.

„Mind if I walk you to it?"

„Of course not." She told him with a smile.

They started walking down the hall, while Jeremy asked her how was her first day back going. He made a few jokes about her geography teacher and his taupe, and she laughed at his good-natured humor. He complimented on her looks today, and she felt like blushing and shyly thanking him was the proper answer.

When she came back at the Salvatore house, she spent the day doing homework, while Elena tried to inform her about everything she missed of school work.

On Tuesday she had cheerleading practice, and Caroline worked with her after practice, so she could learn all the moves she needed.

On Wednesday, Jeremy once again walked her to her classes and she agreed to meet him and Matt at the Grill later for a round of pool. What she didn't know was that when he said Matt will be there, he meant he will be serving them because he was working off a shift. Never the less, she had fun, as Jeremy lost two rounds of a pool from her, so he threw in the towel and offered to pay her drinks.

On Thursday, she had cheerleading practice again and manage to dislocate her ankle, so she ended up meeting the school nurse Betsy.

Her days were fulfilled with obligations and friends, so she didn't have much chance to see Damon. She hated to admit it but she kind of missed him. She was fully aware that the blue-eyed vampire was avoiding her, do to the events of their road trip last weekend.

She knew when he was at the house, but he was lucky enough to use the size of it, so they would never be too close. Plus, his supernatural hearing was also playing in his favor. So it seemed to her like their little road trip didn't change much the dynamic between them.

She was still annoying to him, and he was still the brash, arrogant vampire.

But, her suspicions were denayed, when on Thursday, after Stefan helped her get to her room with her bruised ankle, there was a knock on her door. She was laying on her bed, while the TV was working, with some sitcom reruns on, and she was reading magazines Caroline dropped her by.

Her doors opened and when she looked up, Damon was standing at the door. He was dressed in all black and holding a pink box in his hands.

„I heard somebody was a clumsy cheerleader today." He joked.

She pressed her lips in a thin sarcastic smile and he walked further into the room. He set the box on the nightstand beside her bed, and she curiously looked over it.

„What is that?" she asked him.

He smirked, sat down on her bed beside her, with his back propped on the head support and his legs stretched out in front of him, crossed at the ankles. He took the box, set it on the bed between them and lifted the lid off.

Bonnie widened her eyes at the sight of a cheesecake with red juice dripping and berries on top of it. The box was from the Mystic Falls bakery shop _Luisa_ at the Washington street.

„Is that the Very Berry Cheesecake?" she asked with a smile on her face.

„Mhmm." Damon nodded.

He pulled two plastic forks from his pocket and handed one to Bonnie. She snapped it from him and they both started to devour the cake together.

„Does it hurt?" Damon asked pointing band-aid ankle.

„Not really. It's just a sprain, and nurse Betsy gave me some painkillers, so it's fine."

„Nurse Betsy?" Damon asked with his brows lifted. „That's not prejudice at all."

„She's nice." She convinced him.

„Is she hot?"

„She's a 45 year old women with three kids and a husband who's a trucker. I don't think she's your type."

He made a disgusted face and continued to eat. Bonnie felt a spike of guilt about lying. The truth was nurse Betsy was 27, she was a gorgeous tall brunette with no kids, no boyfriend and was the fulfillment of boyish fantasies about hot nurses. That was probably the reason why Mystic High had so many injured football players.

She didn't know why exactly she lied, but she just missed Damon and his company. She didn't want to spend this time talking about a hot nurse that worked at her school.

„You wanna watch a movie?" she asked him hopefully. He looked surprised and just when she thought he's gonna deny her, he shrugged his shoulders.

„Why not?" he sank his fork in the cheesecake and took a large bite in his mouth. Bonnie took the remote, started to flip through the channels till she found something decent to watch. They settled on all time classic _Casablanca_.

There wasn't much talking between them, as they were settled in comfortable silence, until the end of the movie.

As the credits started to roll, Damon saw Bonnie was deep in thought.

„Did it got you all teary?" he mocked her.

„Not really." She shrugged. „I'm just thinking about how stupid it was that he made her go with Laszlo."

„Stupid?" Damon sat up suddenly feeling offended. „This is an all time classic, there is no stupid in it!"

„No, the movie's great! I love it!" she said looking at Damon. „I'm just saying it's stupid he send her away, and she listened."

„It was selfless. He let go of the woman he loved, so she can be happy. It was the right thing to do."

„He made the decision for her." she said frowning. „She could have done that alone, chose who she loved and went with him. But, he made it for her, and he comes out as a great, good guy who does the right thing. And she is a poor little lost girl who doesn't know who she loves or what she's doing."

„That's why it's so heartbreaking." He argued. „He made the decision on the fact that he knew there were bigger things at that time for him to do, rather than get involved in some crappy love triangle."

She observed his face for a long time speechless, and he just knew she was going to poke him with a nasty comment.

„Is that what you do?" she asked him challenging. „Did you do the right thing and let the girl go?"

He suddenly felt fed up of the conversation. He tossed his feet of the bed and sat with his back turned on her, as he started to put on his boots that he took off when the movie started.

„Oh, this is so not about me." He said bitterly.

„It's not. The movie has an entirely different point from what I'm saying." She responded bitterly to him.

„And what exactly are you saying?" he asked getting up from the bed, turning to look at her, so he can show her how stupid this conversation was to him.

„The girl is not some stupid puppet without a brain, that needs a guy to make a decision for her. She can do it herself." she said strongly.

„Your point being?"

„My point is he didn't to the right thing. He thinks he's being selfless with her, but the truth is he's giving up because he doesn't really want her and he knows he's a bad choice." Pause. „Just because he thinks she would regret it one day, doesn't make his choice the right one."

„Because, she can't do it by herself. She's trapped in a cycle, so it's easier if he just makes the choice for her."

She scoffed at his words. „Nobody has the right to make choices for other people."

„When people are wrong-"

„Even when the _choice_ is wrong, you let them make it by themselves." She talked passionately. „The problem about you, Damon, is that you have authority issues. You don't like it when somebody tells you what to do, but you have no problem with telling other people how to behave. Elena has the same problem. That's why you're so hung up on her."

It was like a slap in the face.

She was talking about Elena?

Where did that come from?

When exactly did he wonder off the conversation, that he didn't even notice it going in that direction?

„So, you think I make too many choices for _Elena_?" he emphasized the girl's name, subtly giving her a sign, she wasn't the one he was talking about.

She sighed deeply, not noticing his sign, or rather ignoring it.

„You try. But, you fail. Stefan tries and she listens. Why do you think that is? Because he wants to. He wants her and her problems, but you,...you don't want that. The obligation, the pressure, the rules... hell, you don't even know if you want Elena at all."

„So, in conclusion: I make too many decisions for _Elena_ because I don't really want _her_?"

„I think you think you want her, so much so, you will painfully make the decision that she doesn't want to be with you when really there is no decision for her to make. She's in love with Stefan, who tells her how he feels every day, and you're just the guy who daily throws in snarky comments about his ailing heart. That doesn't necessarily make a love confession."

He stood frozen for a moment. Where the hell did this girl see all of that? How could she preach about his feelings when she didn't even know him at all? Everything she said seemed a bit reaching, but still, some words stung him.

The truth was, he told Elena how he felt, and even though he compelled her to forget, he thought that somewhere deep inside of her, she knew. He thought it was the selfless thing to do, but could it actually mean, he didn't want to be bothered?

Elena never made the choice between him and Stefan, because they never put her in that position. He just walked around all hurt by Elena, but she never actually did the decision that hurt him. He sort of made it for her.

He made a point about it when he tried to kiss her and killed Jeremy, but that had Katherine written all over. And maybe, that was the problem after all. Katherine was the women he loved, and finding out her betrayal, scared him more than he actually led on.

So, he put Elena in the equation and having the face of the first women he loved, he made her the torturer, and he was her martyr.

Bonnie squirmed on the bed trying to make herself comfortable. She laid back on the pillows and took that remote in her hands. She looked over at him curiously.

„Are you leaving?" she asked him casually like they didn't just have that conversation. „You're not gonna watch another movie?"

He opened his mouth like he wanted to say something, but seeing she was done with the conversation, he decided to leave it. He tossed his boots off his feet and jumped back on the bed.

„Whatever..." he murmured. He snapped the remote from her hands. „But, this time I'm choosing the movie."

So, he didn't exactly choose a movie, but _Moonlighting_ was the only half interesting thing to watch. They were about halfway through the second episode when he noticed Bonnie's head was slipping down. The poor girl was yelling not half an hour ago how she didn't want to sleep yet because she was not tired, and here she was struggling with her bed position.

Damon took one pillow and shifted it under her head, and she, deeply in her sleep, grabbed the same pillow and hugged it with her tiny hands. She adjusted herself so that she was laying on the side, and her head was safely placed on the hugging pillow.

Damon chuckled to himself and turned the volume off so that the sound of the TV doesn't wake her up. He tried to keep his attention on the TV show, but his eyes kept drifting on the sleeping girl beside him.

Truth was, he sort of missed her these past few days. He kept himself busy, and spend a great amount of time with Ric, which was probably the result of the guilt he felt for compelling his friend.

He even tried to keep the contact with her at the minimum, so that Stefan and Elena wouldn't suspect something. They still didn't know about that secret road trip he and Bonnie took, and something about that made him content.

Of course, the main reason was, he didn't know how to deal with the unforgettable kiss that happened. He thought, if he hinted the discussion with the witch, she would probably just dismissed it with another round of 'it was bound to happen, no big deal, who cares if we're attracted to each other, let's ignore it' conversation.

And he didn't want that. He wasn't exactly sure why, but it wouldn't sit well with him if she chose to ignore it. It wasn't just a simple kiss, it was the expression of all the anger, attraction, resentment and heat that was boiling between them, all this time.

He wasn't sure what he was supposed to do next, but he just knew, he didn't want it to be forgotten and left in the past.

And of course, there was the always-present issue with Elena that Bonnie hinted to him. He really didn't know what he wanted.

Bonnie shifted on the bed and laid on her back, putting one hand beside her head. She scrunched her nose in sleep and exhaled like a baby. It was adorable. Damon laid down on his side, propped his head on his hand that was bent in the elbow and ignored the TV.

He focused on the pretty girl beside him and watched her in silence.

He couldn't deny there was something about this girl that tapped his curiosity more than anything. He wouldn't deny she was attractive, after all, he was a man. He noticed women, especially the pretty ones, and Bonnie Bennett was one of them.

What exactly picked his interest, he didn't know. But, the Bonnie Bennett before she lost her memories, wasn't like this. She was the same girl, but this was also the version that he didn't have the luxury to meet. This was the happy giddy female, the typical teenage version of the popular girl.

She was innocent and sweet, and her smile was more free and relaxed. She was not violated with the weight of the world or murderous vampires. She wasn't judging him, she was more opened to him and she wanted to know his side.

He drifted to sleep somewhere along the night, and even though he knew he should go in his room, he didn't want to. His room didn't have Bonnie Bennett sleeping peacefully, it didn't have her soft intakes of the air, and happy mumming in her sleep, it didn't have her spicy smell that he just couldn't get enough.

* * *

The clock read 7:38 when her eyes fell opened. She yawned and stretched her limbs, but one of her hands bumped on something hard. She turned her head and saw a sleeping vampire next to her. It sounded like some horror movie, but no, this was her reality.

Damon opened his eyes and greeted her with a sleepy smile

„Good morning." She said. „You slept here?" she asked with curiosity.

He just shrugged casually. She smiled and set up.

„I got to get ready for school." She said tiredly.

Damon cleared his throat and set himself up next to her. He rubbed his face with his hand and looked at her.

„Do you need help?" he asked.

„With changing my clothes?" she asked surprisingly.

„I meant with getting up." He answered. He gestured on her ankle, and she exhaled in realization.

Before she could examine if she could, she was being lifted off the bed. Damon scooped her up in his arms, his hands under her knees, and her chest against his chest. She gasped and looked at him in shock.

„You okay?" he asked her chuckling.

„Yeah, I just didn't expect you to..."

He slowly put her good leg on the floor and he held her by the waist. She held on to his shoulders as she slowly put her hurt ankle on the floor. She hissed quietly when she tried to stand on her foot.

„Does it hurt?" he asked tilting his head to look at her better. She raised her look, holding on to his shoulders, standing on one foot, while his hands strongly supported her around her waist.

She lost her words when she looked at those blue eyes of his. She took a deep breath and closely observed his face. There was no denying about it, Damon was an attractive man. He was the definition of the tall, dark and handsome. She licked her lips slowly, and Damon saw a flash of the kiss at the parking lot.

He swallowed a lump in his throat and backed up a step away from her.

„You need help?"

„Ou...uhm..." she was surprised when he pulled back, but then again, it was understandable. „No. I can do it myself." She said and put her hurt foot on the floor. It still hurt, but she felt he wanted to get away from her.

He nodded his head, and he backed more away, putting his hands in the pockets and started to make his way out of the room.

Bonnie started walking to her closet, but she put too much pressure on her ankle and she yanked to the front, knocking a chair on her way, and aiming to the floor. Damon used his vampire speed and shifted himself under Bonnie so that she fell on him.

The chair she knocked down bumped in her closet and there was a loud thumb in the room. Bonnie breathed harsh and closed her eyes in the fall, so when she opened them she was once again met with Damon's blue eyes.

Only this time, he held one hand on the small of her back, and the other was on her head.

„You okay?" he asked her. She nodded with her eyes widened. His hand brushed her hair off her face, while she watched him not moving from him. His eyes fell on her lips, and she followed his moves. He leaned closer, trying to get a taste of those sweet lips again, but of course, the universe had different plans for him.

The moment was rudely interrupted by Stefan who burst into the room, yelling for Bonnie, asking if she was okay and what happened. He heard the noise and came to see what happened. Only, he was met with a sight he didn't expect.

Bonnie and his brother were lying on the floor, in a very questioning position.

„Damon?" he was confused. „What- What happened? What are you doing here?"

Bonnie looked at Stefan and as she struggled to get up, the younger vampire stepped in and helped her. She stood on her one foot, and Stefan grabbed her waist to hold her.

„Thank you." She told him.

„What's going on?" he asked looking at her with his sympathetic look.

Damon's stomach rolled on the inside. Just a few seconds ago she was holding him, and he was the one who had a hand on her waist. But, of course, Stefan was the one who takes his stand and gets the thank you, even though he just saved her ass from the fall.

Bonnie looked over at Damon, who was already standing too and had a weird expression on his face. She frowned and turned back to Stefan.

„Ou... I fell." She said lamely.

„How?" Stefan asked suspiciously.

„I...uhm,... I was trying to get to my closet, and I lost my balance, so... It was the ankle." She pointed down on her leg.

Stefan nodded as he lead her to the bed and helped her sit down on it. He kneeled in front of her, setting her ankle in his lap and taking the bandage off.

„It still hurts?" he asked as he carefully inspected it.

„A little." She flinched at his touch.

He turned his head to Damon, who was angrily glaring at the two of them.

„What are you doing here?" Stefan asked him.

There was a long pause, as Bonnie observed Damon and change in his posture. He was acting weird and watching them both like they were his mortal enemies. What was his problem?

„I heard her fall." He said shortly.

Stefan frowned, not really believing in his brother's words.

„He stopped me from knocking down on the floor." Bonnie explained, hoping to ease Stefan's confusion.

Stefan nodded to her and then looked at his brother again.

„Where were you when you heard her fall?"

„In the hallway." Damon shrugged. Stefan nodded in that 'i know your lying' way he always does.

That's when Elena entered the room.

„Oh my God, Bonnie." She exclaimed and run over to the girl „What happened?" she asked.

„She's gonna be fine." Stefan assured her. „Could you help her to the bathroom, and put another cold compress on her leg?"

Elena nodded. „Of course. Com' on, Bonnie." She took her friend holding her under her shoulders and lead her out of the room.

Stefan looked suspiciously over at Damon, once the girls were out of the room.

„What?" his brother asked him annoyed.

„Nothing." Stefan said shaking his head and walked over to the now broken chair. He picked up a broken leg and that's when he noticed something. Damon was barefoot. That was not so weird. But his boots were next to the bed. That was weird.

His brother was just about to leave the room when he stopped him.

„Damon." he called him and the man turned with an irritation on his face. „You said you were in the hallway when you heard her fall?"

Damon frowned and spread his arms. „Yeah."

„Was she already falling or did you entered the room before she fell?"

Damon looked at his brother like he was crazy.

„I don't know. What's with the questions? I kept her from falling. What's so important how did I do it?" he asked exasperated.

Stefan nodded.

„Right. You're right. I guess I 'm just curious how you heard her fall and managed to: open the door, close it behind you, take off your shoes" he points on them next to the bed. „and catch her before she fell?" he said, locking his eyes with his brother.

And now he was screwed. Damon knew it. His brother was smart. He wouldn't let this go just like that. He may not want to discuss it right away, but there will come the time, he will pick this moment again and shove it at Damon, demanding an explanation.

Damon shrugged. „Vampire speed." He simply said.

„Ow, of course." Stefan bumped his forehead with his hand. „Why didn't I come up with that?"

Damon shrugged again like 'who knows'.

„Oh, yeah! I did." Stefan tells him, crossing his arms over his chest. „Guess it just took me more time, to get up from the bed, and out of my room. You, on the other hand, were just outside in the hallway, right?"

„I guess," Damon said shortly. He turned around to get out of the room, but Stefan once again stopped him.

„Hey,"

He turned to his younger brother and looked at him with the coldest expression he could muster at that moment. But, Stefan just smiled knowingly and as started to leave the room, he deliberately brushed his shoulder on the way.

"Don't forget your boots."

* * *

It was funny how she managed to improve her eavesdropping trough a vampire's house when ironically they were the ones who should be pro's in eavesdropping. And, this time it was purely accidental, that Bonnie happened to be passing by Stefan's room, and to her surprise, Damon was in there.

She could hear the brothers in the middle of a heated discussion, so she just couldn't help it, she had to know what it was about.

"Why do you need to keep on lying about everything you do?!" Stefan asked in a loud tone.

„I don't know, Stefan! Are we going to talk about your secret trip the same weekend? You and Elena used the first opportunity and run to the lake house!" Damon yelled angrily.

„How do you know about that?" Stefan was confused.

„Well, I have my sources, too."

Bonnie heard a tired sigh coming from the younger brother.

„So, we were both lying," Stefan said.

„We were." Damon answered in a calmer voice.

There was silence, where neither of them spoke, but then Damon stopped the silence.

„Don't beat yourself up with it. It's how we always were. Unable to tell the truth to each other and be honest. Nothing new there."

Stefan chuckled humorlessly.

„Yeah. It's just after a century and a half, I expected it to be different. I mean, we both know all the horrible things we've done, and we still can't muster up the courage to say it out loud."

„It's not a big deal, Stefan. Just let it go."

„No. I'm sorry, but I can't."

„Why?"Damon whined.

„Because, you are not honest! And I can't trust you!"

„Well, it's both sided!"

„Damon!"

„What do you want me to say, Stefan?"

„The truth!"

There was another long pause.

„Fine. You were right. I took Bonnie with me on a road trip."

„Where?" Pause. „Why? When? How- why would you-!where did- I don't even know where to begin with the questions!"

„You don't need to know anything. Just know that I found a way to help her. That's all." Damon said.

„Help her? You? You are going to help Bonnie?" Stefan started laughing. „Again, I ask why?"

„Because I know how!"

„And I am supposed to believe you're doing this, cause...you care about Bonnie, or you want to help her-" he laughed again. „Sorry, it just sounds even funny, saying it!"

„Would you just-"

„You don't care about anyone but yourself!"

Damon scoffed at his brother. „Could we skip the speech where you dehumanize my character and try to open my eyes with some stupid mumbo jumbo crap about you being the better and greater person than I am?"

„I'm not better, Damon. But, this isn't about you or me! I don't want Bonnie to get hurt! She's been through enough and to confuse her even more with some games you're trying to play, is not going to help anybody."

„You don't understand, Stefan."

„No, I don't. Wheater you want it or not... you hurt people, Damon. I just don't want that to happen to someone who doesn't deserve it."

„Well, then you can stop beating yourself up. Do you want to be the one who's gonna take care of the witch? Fine! Be my guest! Quite frankly, you're making my job easier. At leats, I don't have to pretend to care anymore and try to convince her how I'm doing anything because I care about her!"

„Damon!"

„What? I'm just stating the facts, Stefan! That's what you wanted! I don't care what happens to her! She can die for all I care! I was just trying to save my ass!"

A loud crack was the last thing she heard before she left. There was really no point on dwelling. Bonnie was bothered with everything that was happening. And, even though she thought she was starting fresh, there wasn't really any truth in it.

She was still in that mind-numbing cycle she was from the start. Only this time, things managed to get even more complicated as now she was starting to catch feelings for a selfish murderous vampire, who didn't care at all for her.

Okay, she wasn't that stupid. Over the past few weeks, she did got to know Damon a little bit better. And even though, she knew he was probably saying those things to Stefan, just so his brother would leave him alone, she couldn't let him treat her that way.

He needed to sort himself straight. It was obvious he didn't know what he was doing and what he was feeling. So, she wouldn't be the dumb teenage girl waiting for the guy to realize what he had.

No, this time, she was going to play it differently. If he wants to act like nothing happened between them and if he doesn't have the balls to confront her on that? Fine. She won't do it either.

It was time for her to move on and take matters into her own hands.

By the time she would be done, Damon Salvatore wasn't gonna know what hit him.

* * *

 _ **So, yeah...I'm back. Sort of. I know I've been a little slow with the updates lately, but I am really trying to finish up this story. So, no, I haven't given up on it. I can't give you a real answer when will I update, but I assure you this story will have an ending.**_

 _ **Anyway, about the fic, Damon still has some things he needs to sort out before he just falls into this with Bonnie. And she is not letting him just forget about the other issues around them. She's gonna give him a little hard time, so he can finally count his losses and start fresh.**_

 _ **Thank you for reading! Excited to see what you think. See you next time.**_


	15. Chapter 15 - Losing my mind over you

Chapter 15 - Losing my mind over you

He sits in the living room, with a book in his hands. It's a very nice evening and it feels good spending it in the quiet of his home. His eyes drift casually on the clock above the lighted fireplace.

22:17.

He gets back to the reading, intensively concentrating on the writing in his hands. He licks his lips in thought about the book. He enjoys this kind of evenings. He enjoys the house. He enjoys the fireplace. He enjoys the book. Everything is so enjoyable.

His eyes raise to read the clock.

22:18.

He frowns, getting his eyes back on the book. He furrows his brows, tightly presses his lips together and lets one hand fall over the handholder of the chair he's sitting on.

He looks at the clock again.

22:18.

His eyes wide for a moment. He shakes his head quickly as he raises himself from the seat and closes the book, going over to the bar, pouring himself a drink. He downs it in one sip. He walks over to the fireplace and grabs a piece of wood to throw it in the fire.

He dusts off his hands and proudly looks at the clock in front of him.

22:19.

The proud look falls off his face. He angrily walks back to the chair he was previously sitting on and opens the book, focusing on the reading again. His right-hand settles on the arm of the chair and he doesn't even notice it when he starts tapping his fingers against the hard wood.

 _Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap._

He hesitantly raises his eyes to check the time and sees it mocking at him.

22:19.

His face twitches in nervous, but he continues to sit and read. Enjoy.

„Have you seen my phone?" his brother's voice startles him. He didn't even notice when had he entered the room. He was just so focused on his reading.

Stefan enters his vision, walking over to the table in the middle of the room.

„Ah, it's here."

Damon ignores him, getting his attention back on the book, while Stefan types something on his phone.

 _Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap._

The green eyes of the younger brother find his older brother and his peaceful posture sitting on the chair. He frowns, noticing the nervous tapping of Damon's fingers on the armchair. He observes his older brother with curiosity, tilting his head slightly and lowering his hand with the phone in it.

„Are you feeling okay?" he asks his brother curiously.

Damon raises his eyebrows and then frowns seeing his brother's worried face expression.

He shakes his head in confusion.

„Sure. Why wouldn't I be?"

Stefan looks at him with his mouth a little open in surprise, watching Damon's fingers tapping non-stop.

 _Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap._

„No reason." He shakes it off, anyway.

Damon lowers his head back to the book on his lap. Silence surrounds them for a moment, but unfortunately not for long.

„Have you eaten today?"

He looks strangely back at his little brother that's standing in the middle of the living room, observing him and the room all around them. Maybe he's looking for something.

„Yeah." He shrugs. He doesn't even notice the sound his fingers are making. „I had a blood bag half an hour ago."

Stefan nods with his eyes wide open.

„Why do you ask?" he frowns.

„No reason." The younger vampire shakes his head. Damon notices the weird posture in his brother, but he doesn't ask about it. He slowly diverts his eyes down, focusing on what he was doing before.

Back to the book.

 _Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap._

„Have you had a drink today?"

The older Salvatore raises his rolling eyes to his brother who is standing in his place, frustratingly blowing out a breath.

„What?" he asks and looks at the green eyed guy like he's crazy. Which, to be honest, might be the case.

„Have you had anything of alchocol today?"

Damon frowns. „I just had a glass of bourbon."

Stefan nods his head slowly, his eyes falling down on something beside Damon.

 _Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap._

„Want another one?" His brother asks quickly, as he walks over to the bar and starts pouring two glasses, not waiting for the answer. He stands in front of his older brother and hands him the drink. Damon observes him carefully.

„Stefan?" he says slowly, accepting the glass, watching his brother sip his own drink. „Have you been sneaking human blood again?"

„What?" Stefan asks surprised. „What? Why? No." He answers.

Damon raises his eyebrows in question again.

Stefan shakes his head in confusion. „Why would you think that? Damon, what kind of question is that?"

„Well, what's with the questions you've been directing at me?" Damon counters him.

Stefan looks more confused. He observes Damon's questioning face and tapping fingers.

 _Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap._

„You're acting weird."

„You're acting weird."

„No, Damon. You're acting weird. Look at your fingers." Stefan points to his right hand. Damon looks at his fingers, stops the tapping and squeezing them in a fist. He looks back at Stefan who looks completely freaked out. He shakes his head like he has no worry on his mind.

„I was working on my knuckles. Trying to ease them a bit." He answers, working his hand.

Stefan looks disbelievably at him. He sighs and puts his drink down on the table.

„If you want to talk about something, I'm here."

Damon scoffs. „Don't be ridiculous, Stefan. I'm not sharing with you."

His younger brother puts his hands on his hips, shaking his head. He knows something is bothering him, but he just a tough nut to crack.

„Alright." He says defeated and turns to fetch his car keys from a bowl on the table. He's already halfway out of the room... „I'm gonna go-"

„It's almost 10:30," Damon says looking at his book, interrupting his brother's intentions to leave. Stefan turns around, looking strangely at his brother.

„Yeah?"

Damon raises his look from the book, tossing it aside and standing in a quick move from his seat, walking over to the fireplace and staring at the clock on it.

„It's almost 10:30," he repeats and turns to his brother, pointing on the clock. „And it's gonna be 11 p.m., too." He nods to Stefan, raising his eyebrows to emphasize what he's saying. „You know?"

Stefan looks like a deer staring into headlights. His eyes don't blink as he watches his brother, thinking what the hell is wrong with him. _Did he drink some bad blood?_

„Soon it is gonna be 11 o'clock," Damon says angrily. „Do you understand?"

„Time...flys when you're having fun?" Stefan asks unsure.

„What? What are you talking about?" Damon asks him incredulously.

„I don't know!" Stefan answers. „You're talking about time and-"

„It's almost 11 o'clock, Stefan and who do you see in this house besides me and you!? Ha!?"

„Well, I should be picking up Elena now, and Bonnie is on a date-"

„A date!" Damon yells. „A date with Jeremy Gilbert!" he says the boy's name mockingly.

Stefan frowns.

„How did we let that happen?" he asks as if it's the biggest question of the universe.

„Damon, if that-"

„It's a school night, Stefan. And it's almost 10:30 in the night...and she is nowhere near to be seen or heard! That is... irresponsible!" he yells, waving his arms around.

„Well, as you know... Bonnie is her own person." his brother tries to reason him. "She can make the decision for herself and-"

„No, she can't!"

Stefan raises his eyebrows in question, stunned by his brother's behavior.

„She's not fine! She's still struggling with her memory loss and she shouldn't be out this late! Who knows where the little Gilbert is gonna take her?"

„Damon." Stefan sighs, rubbing his forehead in thought. „What is this about? Why are you-...?

He stops and observes his brother, it's like he's trying to read it off his face. Only one thing explains his weird conduct, even though it seems the least one possible. Still...

Could it be?

It's really, the only rational explanation.

„Are you..." there's a long pause because he's not quite sure if it's true. „...Jealous?"

„Pff!" Damon scoffs at the words. „Jealous? Why would I be jealous?"

„I don't know. Bonnie...?"

„You think I'm jealous of Bonnie?"

„No,... I think you're jealous of Jeremy..." Stefan frowns, slowly continuing, „...because he's with Bonnie?" he pronounces the words like a question because they feel weird on his tongue.

„Jeremy Gilbert? Me, Damon Salvatore jealous of little Gilbert? Don't make me answer that lame question, Stefan. You know it sounded weird even coming out of your mouth."

He can't exactly deny that. It does sound weird. Just not for the reason Damon's trying to present for.

„Then, what is the problem?"

„The problem, little brother,... is that the little witch is supposed to be in the house at this time of the night. Do you remember our limit when we were young? We were supposed to be at the house by 8 o'clock and in bed by 9 at the latest."

„Yeah, well that was back in the 1860's. This is a different time." Stefan reminds him.

„That's what I'm saying," Damon says like it's the most normal thing in the world. He sits back in the chair, he was previously on, continuing his speech. „Back then we had rules we had to follow and we never even thought about breaking them."

„Well, I specifically remember breaking them, more than once. Especially you."

„But, I'm a rebel. I've always been one." Damon says passionately.

Stefan rolls his eyes. He might be over his head with this. There is no way in reasoning with Damon, now. „Whatever. Look, if it's that late to you, just go to bed."

Damon shakes his head. Stefan turns to leave the room when he turns back to face his frowning brother.

„Oh, listen, I'm gonna go pick up Elena. I hope I have your permission, considering it's almost 11 o'clock. I wouldn't want to be overstaying my curfew?"

The mocking is dripping from his words and it's Damon's time to roll his eyes.

„Screw you!"

„Is that a yes? Oh, and don't worry, when we get back we'll be very quiet. We wouldn't wanna wake you from your sleep. You probably have to get up very early in the morning to read the newspapers."

„Go to hell, Stefan."

„Oh, and remind me when it's bingo night if you need a ride to the senior center."

„Bite me."

„By, grampa."

He hears his brother laughing still, as he steps out of the house and closes the door behind him. He feels something poking his butt and he inspects what it is, holding the book he was 'reading' not 5 minutes ago.

He throws it across the room, frustrated, growling and raising up from his seat. Maybe a cold shower is exactly what he needs.

.

* * *

If there is a fundamental truth about you that everybody around you is known to, what is the point of trying to change it? What good would it bring to those around you? They usually say 'change is good'. But is it really?

Damon is an asshole. He knows that. It's not anything new or unknown. Anybody who has ever met him also knows that. He loves being like that because saying everything that's on your mind seems to be a correct way to be.

What is the point of acting something you're not? Honesty is the best policy. That's another saying that he sticks by too. It also sounds like something that shouldn't get you into trouble.

So, then why was he in trouble now?

Well, to understand that, he has to rewind his thoughts a couple of hours back, before he found out how Bonnie planned to ruin his day and before he accused his brother about the Ripper problem.

 _Damon smiles widely as he walks over to her room. He holds another pink box with cupcakes inside and he can already see the smile she's going to give him, once he shows her what's he got._

 _It's the middle of the week and he knows how much she hates those days. Even more than Monday's. She always says: Monday's have purposes. They are a start of something new. Friday's announce the end is near and weekend ...is the weekend. No explanations are necessary there. Wednesdays are the worse. They have no purpose. They don't mean anything and nothing usually happens then. They're just boring._

 _The door of her room are opened and he enters like he owns the place with a huge grin on his face._

„ _Guess what I have?" he asks in a singsong voice, but he notices the room is empty. Her closet is half opened, there are some shoes on the floor and clothes thrown over the bed. But she is nowhere to be found._

„ _Witchy? Where are you?" he turns around because he knows she's in the house, just as she was exactly 4 minutes ago when he heard her growling in frustration._

 _He knows it was exactly 4 minutes ago, because it was the exact time, that he needed to brush his teeth (for no apparent reason, he had a blood bag earlier, so he didn't want Bonnie to be grossed out while they eat cupcakes) and pick up the box from the kitchen._

„ _Bonnie?" he asks louder and that's when he hears her respond coming from across the hallway._

„ _I'll be right out!"_

 _He smiles at the sound of her voice as, he walks out of her room, and stands in front of the bathroom she's currently occupying, with the pink box holding tightly against his chest. The girl is a total sucker for sugar and sweet, so he knows a way to make her day and warm her heart._

„ _I was thinking we could watch another movie!" he yells to her, so she can hear him over the door. „ The brooding half vampire, half human couple just left and we got the next three hours alone! I say we make it worth it! I'll even let you pick the movie!"_

 _His grin spreads more, as he hears the lock on the door being undone and when she opens the door, his smile slowly fades, as his eyes wide at the sight of her. She's standing in front of him, her pretty green eyes highlighted more than usual, skin flawless and shiny like always, smelling like freshly spring flowers._

 _It's a new body wash she bought, and if he's being really honest, he doesn't prefer it at all. He likes the cinnamon scent from her hair conditioner and the always present honey note from the body lotion, that she puts on every night before she goes to bed._

 _She has a blue skater dress with big yellow flowers printed on, that clings perfectly to her petite body and her hair is a mess of perfectly done curls, framing her heart-shaped face. He can't deny she looks beautiful, but it crushes his plan for a movie night, for just the two of them. He knows, without asking, she's going out, but it doesn't stop him from asking where._

„ _You're going out?" he asks like it doesn't interfere with his plans, even though it does._

„ _Yeah." She nods her head simply, passing by him, entering her room and looking over it in search for her shoes. She picks the white ankle strap heels and puts them on._

„ _Caroline taking you out?" he asks casually, digging for more information._

„ _No." A quick answer comes from the pretty girl, that's now picking her earrings, that will go with her outfit._

„ _Donovan taking you for some junk food?"_

 _It's a desperate attempt because he knows she's way too dressed for a fast food dinner, but he still hopes it's the human boy taking her out._

 _The last few days she has been spending a lot of time with the blue-eyed knew exactly why because, with him, she felt the easiest. Maybe it was the fact, he was the only connection to the life she remembers. Or maybe because everybody else was just nervously waiting for her to get back to her old self._

 _She was happy to have Matt by her side. He never made her talk about the supernatural side of their lives, probably because he himself wasn't that invested in it._

 _The dynamic between her and Matt is easy to describe. Endearing._ _It would be weird to say it's like they're siblings, because, it's not like that. Siblings make you smile and care for them, but they also make you go crazy and hate them at the same time. This was not it. He notices it's different from anything he saw before, like with her and Elena, or her and Caroline._

 _It's pure and childlike, the way they talk to each other, with such care and love, that it's hard to stay cold to it. He likes that. He likes how she smiles and how care-free she can be. It doesn't make him jealous at the human boy, because, he loves when she's happy, even though he's not the one making her happy._

„ _Actually, I'm going with Jeremy." She says, making his face cringe at her words._

„ _Jeremy?" he asks, „As in Jeremy Gilbert?" and it sounds like he's spitting the name out. She's not sure she likes that._

„ _Yes." She answers shortly, turning to face him, looking around, her eyes searching for her cell phone and purse. She locates them on the nightstand._

 _The blue-eyed vampire snorts and starts laughing mockingly, and she simply has to react on it._

„ _What's so funny?" she asks him with a serious face, making him know, she doesn't appreciate his behavior._

„ _What's so funny?" he repeats the question, muttering it in his chin and raising his eyes to her. „Where the hell did that come from?"_

 _She still doesn't understand his reaction, so she just shakes her head in question, with a frown on her face._

„ _Since when do you go out with him?"_

„ _Well, if you must know, it's a date and-"_

„ _A date?" he cuts her off and starts laughing even louder. „What?"_

„ _Is there a problem here?" she asks him._

„ _No." He stops the laughing and looks at her with a sinister grin still on his lips. „But, didn't you say, you didn't want to date a guy you don't remember being your boyfriend? Isn't this exactly what you're doing? I mean, I'm just curious, what exactly did the Boy Wonder do, to talk you into 'a date'?"_

„ _You really want to know?" she asks him, taking a bold step closer to him._

„ _Yes, please, enlighten me."_

„ _He asked." She says simply, her voice beaming with pride._

 _The smile falls off his face like someone just wiped it off and he hates the thought that crosses his mind. 'That's all? Why didn't I do that?'_

 _He's aware, she somehow knows what his exact thoughts are and that's all written in the smile she now has on her face. He hates how exposed he feels and how pathetic he might seem, standing in front of her, the pink box still in his hands, asking himself, 'what the hell is happening'?_

„ _Oh, you got something on your face." She says as she uses her hand to wipe it off roughly from his cheek. He backs up when he notices her frown and the attempt to do it again._

„ _What?" he wipes his cheek himself, looking down on the back of his hand, confused even more._

„ _Yeah, you got a little 'jealousy' here." She says, pointing on her own cheek._

 _He freezes at the moment, his hand still on his cheek, wiping the invisible stain when the realization hits him. She's screwing him over._

 _Fine. Two can play the game._

 _He scoffs at her, a thin smile appearing on his lips, as he raises his mean look on her._

„ _He asked, ha?" he repeats her words and waits for her to nod at him._

„ _Yes. He did." She says proudly._

„ _I didn't know you were that easy." He proudly speaks the words._

 _A smile disappears from her face, taking note of what he said. Her mouth falls down, and she shakes her head slowly._

 _His grin only grows, as she frowns, picking up her purse and taking one last look at him. She hits down on the pink box in his hands, watching the sugary contents spill out on the floor._

 _She turns abruptly away from him, muttering 'asshole' on her way out._

 _._

'He might've pushed it too far.'

He thinks as he squeezes too much shower gel on his bath sponge and washes his body with it.

He's halfway trough his shower when he hears the downstairs door open. He quickly rinses the shampoo from his hair and body, closes the water once he's done and steps out of the shower. He quickly dries himself off and puts his sweatpants and a shirt on in a hurry, listening to the sounds of her whereabouts.

He finds Bonnie downstairs in the kitchen, sitting at the counter with a mug in front of her. She's still in her dress, the purse next to the mug and her feet released from her shoes. She has her back turned on him and she doesn't even seem to notice when he enters the room.

She jumps a little when she sees him from the side, appearing out of nowhere, slowly walking over to the kitchen sink, his eyes briefly on her. She stiffens, looking at his back as he pours himself some tea.

She thinks about drinking the tea in one large sip, but it's too hot so she can't. She thinks maybe she could take it with herself upstairs in the room, just so she could avoid him.

She's about to stand up from her seat when he turns around and sets the mug next to hers. He silently hands her a bag, looking at her intensively. She eyes the marshmallows in his hand, biting the inside of her cheek to stop herself from saying anything.

She turns her head away from him, not casting him one glance. He shrugs his shoulders in disappointment and sits on a stool next to her. Her head is turned away from him, ignoring him, but she asks herself why she doesn't just run away.

After a couple of minutes of silence, he clears his throat and sets his eyes on her. She doesn't have to turn to him, to know he's burning a hole in her head from his glaring. He nudges her lightly, to make her look at him, but she just ignores him.

He does it one more time, a little harder, but she just shakes her head in response. He sighs heavily, munching on a marshmallow.

He eyes her mug that is safely cupped in her small hands. He raises his eyebrows and tugs the mug out of her hands. She ignores his tug the first time, but when he tries a second she turns abruptly, snapping his hands away.

„What are you doing?" she asks incredulously.

„She speaks." He says, withdrawing his hand away.

„Not to you, I don't." She turns her head away from him again.

„Technically, you are speaking right now even if you are saying you're not talking to me."

She shakes her head at him, rolls her eyes and straightens her legs in order to leave. He stops her, grabbing her wrist quickly before she gets up and looking strictly in her eyes.

„Let me go." She says quietly, but she doesn't try to move more.

„Com on Bon Bon. Sit here with me."

She frowns. „I'm going to bed."

„Can't you see I'm trying to do something here?" he asks her exasperated.

„And what exactly are you trying?" She finally looks at him.

He shakes his head, hesitantly answering „To apologize, I guess."

„Funny, I don't think I heard the word 'sorry' coming out of your mouth."

„Well sometimes, actions speak more than words." He says smugly, shaking the bag of marshmallows in front of her.

She raises her eyebrows and rolls her eyes, standing up from the seat. He quickly gets up, using vampire speed to stand in front of her, holding his hands in front of her to stop her from making another move.

„Wait."

She looks at him pointedly, crosses her arms over her chest and waits for him to speak. When he says nothing she sighs and shakes her head, trying to pass by him out of the room.

He oversteps in front of her, making her roll her eyes at him.

„Damon, just let me go to bed. I'm tired."

„No."

„Well if you're not gonna say anything to me then I have nothing to do here."

„Alright." He says with finality. He closes his eyes for a moment, licking his lips and taking a deep breath. „I'm sorry."

„For what?" she asks suspiciously.

He rolls his eyes at her. „Oh, com on. This is hard enough as it is."

But she doesn't back out. She sends him a glare, waiting for an explanation.

„I am sorry for being rude to you earlier. It was not my place to say anything and I know I was wrong."

„Thank you." she nods to him, accepting his apology.

He nods in satisfaction. He smiles lightly at her and enjoys how her face lights up, trying to suppress the smile that's creeping on her lips. She lets herself smile to him and it warms his heart. He takes a step closer to her, his expression changing into a serious one.

"Listen, I wanted to ask you something. Did you, maybe, talked to Stefan?"

She raises her eyebrows. "I talk you your brother every day. But, I'm not sure what exactly do you mean when you say 'talk'?

"About our trip?"

"Oh, no." she answers shortly.

"So, he hasn't asked you anything about it?"

"No. Why?"

"I'm just..." he clears his throat. "checking."

"You told him about it." she says.

"Well, yeah. He was starting to get suspicious."

She nods her head.

"Listen, in case he asks you, just tell him we went to Myrtle Beach. Don't say anything about Maryland or something that has to do with it. Okay?"

She frowns. "Okay. Why?"

"Let's just say, Stefan doesn't like when I associate myself with that town or the people from it. If he found out that I took you there, he would kill me."

"Okay. I won't tell him."

"Good. It will be our little secret." he smiles to her.

She looks suspiciously at him. He has that wide, teeth showing smile on his face, biting slowly on his lower lip, making her vision blurry and her earlobes on fire. She shakes her head lightly, blinking away, as she takes a deep breath and a proud smile on her face.

„Aren't you gonna ask me how was it?" she asks him.

„How was what?" he asks in confusion.

„My date."

He clears his throat and picks his mug from the counter, turning his back on her to spill the rest of the tea into the sink.

„No. It's not my place to ask. I really don't want to know." He says as flatly as he can.

„Oh, okay." She says disappointedly.

„Of course, if you want to tell me, I can listen." He shrugs his shoulders, raising his eyes to her, noticing another smile on her face. She sits back on the stool, looks at him as he turns to face her and leans against the sink. She starts to talk excitedly.

„Well, it was nice. We went to the movies, then at the grill, got something to eat and had some drinks. Matt was working tonight, so we even hang out a little with him. We took a nice walk around town..."

„Did he kiss you?" he interrupts her, his eyes set on the counter in front of her.

She raises her eyes to him, surprised by his question.

„Yes." She answers quietly.

He seems a little taken back by her answer. It sort of slaps him right in the face even though the word is quietly and softly pronounced. His eyes are looking anywhere but her. He's playing it cool, but she reads something different on him.

There's a long silence between them. Neither one of them speaks anymore and the tension in the room only grows. He's not really sure why he reacts the way he does on something she says that happened. When on the other hand, just this morning he was watching his brother and Elena make out shamelessly during breakfast and he didn't even blink an eye.

Wasn't he suppose to be in love with Elena?

So, then why does it concern him more what Bonnie did on her date with her boyfriend?

„Okay. Well..." he finally says, standing straight and looking at the girl, that's deep in her thoughts. „I'm gonna go to bed. It's late."

Stefan's laugh invades his ears for a moment again, seeing his brother's face in his head and calling him 'grampa', but he shakes it off and starts to leave the kitchen.

He walks away from her, without another word, and when he reaches the hallway he starts to take larger and faster steps. He feels he has to get away from her before it explodes. The tension is getting thicker between them every time they interact and he would rather avoid it.

His foot is just about to step on the first step of the staircase when he hears her angry voice behind him.

„You're a bozo!" she yells.

He freezes. He slowly turns to face her and opens his mouth to calmly ask her what does she mean, but he doesn't get the chance.

„You're an idiot! And a self-centred, selfish, narcissistic, stupid assface that would rather have a stick shoved far up your ass, then to say what's actually on his mind!"

His eyes wide at the girl that's standing on the other side of the hallway, ready to set him on fire or worse... she might even shove a stick in his ass.

„What? What did I do?" he plays oblivious, because maybe if he plays an idiot for longer, maybe she will actually believe it.

„Oh, shut your ass!" she yells frustrated. She starts walking closer to him, slowly.

„You know, I thought that you're the one who says what's on his mind, I thought you don't beat around the bush, you know? You go straight to the head and don't care what happens or how others are gonna react to your sharp tongue and heartless facts!"

She stops talking, to take some air in her lungs, but doesn't stop walking towards him.

„But, you're not like that! You're actually the worse because you never say what's on your mind! You're too afraid someone might see through that false bravado and 'I got balls to do shit around when no one else does' because you're nothing more than a scared little boy that's desperately looking for an approval from his brother,..."

She pauses again, with each step getting closer to him.

„...because he is the only person who knows the real you and who should see that beneath all that macho and murder stuff,..."

She stops right in front of him and looks up at him, when ironically he feels much smaller than her right now, listening quietly as she lists all his flaws, that no one else can read off him as good as she can and he feels the tension again growing and raising more and more with each step she takes and every word that comes out of her mouth, absolutely loving how irresistible and sexy she looks when she's mad at him. Not, just generally mad. Specifically, mad at him.

It's something he noticed a long time ago, even before he noticed her charm and unrepeatable golden shine in her olive green eyes. When she gets angry at him, there's this fire that ignites and it may be from the flames that's she using to burn his ass, but he knows he makes her tick more and different than anybody else does. And the best of all, she does the same to him.

„...that you're still the same idiot who he grew up with and played football and thought him how to ride a horse and how to talk to girls and how to be a good man and make good decisions so that one day he can do all those things and say how lucky he was to have a brother like you!"

She exhales frustrated, a sharp breath hitting his face like an angry wind, as he just stands in place, his eyes set on her and no words to speak.

He doesn't know what to say. Not because, he doesn't know how to respond to her words that seem to once again strike him directly where they have to, but because he's too distracted by her proximity. By the closeness of her body and that flowery scent, that's wafting from her. Earlier, he didn't like it very much on her, but now it seems perfect. He enjoys how angrily she looks at him, ready to charge at him in any moment. She looks ready to break him and he can't deny how much he would love that.

„You got nothing to say?!" she yells at him, exasperated and full of rage, shaking her head, making the soft curls jump playfully around her furious face.

He leans forward planting an open mouth kiss on her lips, his hands gripping her face and letting out a surprised growl of satisfaction. She doesn't have time to react and she doesn't exactly know how, so she just accepts his tongue in her mouth, leaning slightly back on him.

The kiss is not rushed and fast, but it's not slow either. It's different from the first one, which was rough and feverish. This one seems more desirous and earnest. They're more coordinated that the previous time and it feels like they're two puzzle pieces finally connecting together.

Her hands find his face, caressing it softly, when he lowers his body down on hers, setting his arms around her waist tightly and lifting her up. She squeals in his mouth when her feet lose the solid ground under, but it quickly turns into a moan, enjoying the closeness, as he holds her in line with his body and his sharp teeth biting playfully her bruised lips.

He slowly pulls away, when he notices her struggle for fresh air, but still holding her up in his arms. He looks in her bright eyes, brushing her hair off her face, while she recovers from his lip attack.

He doesn't notice the anger anymore or the frustration. There's only lust and want in her eyes, and a hitching breath, along with trembling lips and shaking body. He loves it how she melts against him. From a rabid wildcat to an adorable, precious kitten. She's absolutely perfect.

His eyes darken again, leaning his face a little closer to hers, looking for an approval from her and an answer if she can handle this. If she can handle _him_.

And she wants to say yes. She wants him to take her, right there and then, but she's not sure she _could_ handle him. It was not supposed to happen like this. She was supposed to teach him a lesson, make him think through so that he can realize his mistakes and faults and then, if it's right and real, and honest...he could have her.

But, being here in his arms and with her feet hanging in the air, it doesn't seem like something she should be questioning. She wants him and it's obvious he wants her, so why is she still hesitating?

Maybe, it's the fact that somewhere deep in her head there is a voice screaming at her, how she will regret it, or he's not the guy for her and she will only get hurt by him. Maybe, it's because she knows Elena is still not completely out of his heart and it's possible she never fully will be.

Maybe it's because, she just got back from her date with another guy and he's not even decent enough to respect that, even though she just crushed Jeremy's heart by admitting him there will never be anything between them. But, Damon didn't know that. He knew she's been kissed by another guy tonight and it still didn't stop him from taking what he wanted.

She can see the question in his eyes, practically begging her to let him, to give in, to surrender her stubborn judgment and do what deep down she really wants. What they both really want to do.

It doesn't take that long for her to nod her head slightly and let him once again claim her lips with his, hugging her tighter and grabbing one of her thighs, suggesting her to wrap her legs around his waist. Which she does eagerly and lets him carry her upstairs to his bedroom, with their lips sealed together the entire time.

* * *

 ** _Author's note(rant) :_**

 ** _Another messy chapter (I just can't run away from those). Bonnie's plan to mess Damon up didn't exactly pass how she planned it originally. It ended up with Damon actually messing her up. :)_**

 ** _We'll see in the next chapter what happens; do you think she might do something she would regret? I'll let you guys stew for a while with that. ;)_**

 ** _I already have planned most of the stuff and even have a plan to end this in max 10 more chapters(I'm aiming more for like 22, 23), but that can change if another plot comes to my mind, which happens more often than you think._**

 ** _And, I know I suck with these updates, they always seem to come later than I planned them, but my schedule is full. The only time and appetite I have for writing is when I come home from the night shift...I guess that may be the reason this is such a mess... xD_**

 ** _Anyway, I also broke my silent promise to myself, that I will not publish another story until I end this one, but of course...I did. Long story short, check out my new Bamon fanfic "My best friend's daughter". if you want, of course, no pressure._**

 ** _Thank you for reading and I look forward to reading your opinions. They are highly appreciated._**


	16. Chapter 16 - Don't shoot me down

_**AN: I decided to give you a little more to read on, since posting a new chapter is something I suck at... I hope you guys like it. It was hard to get the inspiration for writing this, especially when I got a few bad reviews and even PM how much somebody doesn't like this story and thinks I should just stop writing it, (you know who you are).**_

 ** _Despite that, I managed to find my inspiration and just go on, no matter what somebody says. All I can really do is tell you this:_**

 ** _IF YOU DON'T LIKE IT, DON'T READ IT!_**

 ** _I mean, if I don't like the way some fanfic is going, I stop reading it, I don't go and leave awful messages to the writer, so it throws his off of his wagon. In the end, it's worst, because then I fail the rest of those who like the story and who want to find out what's gonna happen._**

 ** _Anyhow, the point is, I needed to get that off my chest and tell you how much I appreciate those who give me positive feedback and how much they inspire the writing. Thank you all from the bottom of my heart!_**

 ** _Thank you all from the bottom of my heart! R &R. :)_**

* * *

Chapter 16 - Don't shoot me down

From the moment his hands touch her, she loses any of her ability to think straight. There's nothing else that matters, just his lips, his fingers and the moves he's making. Everything else loses meaning. The rest of the world around them has faded away and suddenly it doesn't matter who he is or what has he done in the past. The only thing Bonnie can think about is the overwhelming need for his attention and feeling the closeness of his body.

She feels like she's on fire. Small sparks igniting under her skin, where his hands make the trace. She feels helpless and free, enjoying his athletic carved body and his musky scent of bourbon vanilla and mahogany, fogging her brain from any restraint or limits she ever let herself cross before. It's like she's drunk. Drunk with the flavor of Damon Salvatore. Her mind is clouded with a new kind of feeling. A feeling she's quite sure she never felt before.

It's not just an attraction or acting on simple lust. This time, it runs deeper than that. It's like he's trying to carve himself inside of her skin, and it just feels all kinds of right and wrong.

When her back hits the mattress, there's only one thought going through her mind:

 _Can she handle him?_

Not just physically, but mentally. Damon is a handful on an everyday basis, not to mention now, with his rigid body covering hers like a blanket, his warm breath tickling her ear and neck, his arms wrapped around her, running his long fingers through her hair, leaving sloppy wet kisses all over her neck, heading down to her chest...

Oh, that tongue of his is wicked. So wicked, in fact, she doesn't even notice when he reaches to her side and unzips her dress. She just feels it loosen all of the sudden and the next thing she knows, it's off. Dropped down on the floor, already forgotten, just like his shirt that follows right after it. She lays on his ridiculously huge bed only in a matching set of satin navy blue panties and bra.

And then, he's right back on top of her. Parting her legs and setting himself between them, as he grips her tights roughly, but pleasantly and catches her lips in a solid kiss. She runs her hands all over his back and softly tugs on his hair, enjoying every growl and moan he makes.

 _Wait, what was she thinking about a moment ago?_

She feels like her lungs are about to burst, as he kisses her hungrily like there's no tomorrow. He probably feels her struggle for air so he abandons her lips, giving her space to breathe. Her chest is heavily raising and dropping, getting the sharpness back in her blurry eyes, as her brain feds on much-needed oxygen.

She lets her eyes fall down on the men who's currently tending to her breasts, cupping them in his strong hands and licking the sweat of her skin. Her eyes roll in the back of her head and her lower parts throb with such want, it's almost ludicrous. She never felt anything like that. She never felt such desire, passion or arousal. She never-

 _Wait._

She never...

 _Oh, no._

It's like a light bulb suddenly appearing above her head.

A very confusing, questionable light bulb.

„Damon..." She breathes his name out, while her hands grip his shoulders. He's not stopping his movements. His stomach brushes against her sensitive bud as he lowers himself further and once again she loses perspective. She moans loudly, leaving scratches over his back and neck.

And that only makes Damon sunk in deeper. He detaches his lips from her chest and slowly starts to nibble his way down her stomach. When his tongue darts out to play around her navel and his warm breath touches her belly, her eyes widen.

„Damon." She tugs his hair, trying to get his attention, but then she feels his teeth graze her skin delicately, making her shiver under his heavy weight.

„Ooooh, D-Damon."

„Bonnie.." he murmurs in her skin, as he drags his hands down her body, grabbing her hips firmly like he's trying to imprint his hold on her.

„Damon..." her voice is torn between desire and denial, while his mouth travels down her stomach, going closer and closer to where she dreams of having him. But, there's a small part of her, that knows she has to stop this. She hears him longingly saying her name once again, his fingers playing with the top of her panties and it's instantly like a sign she has to do something.

„No! Damon! Stop!" she roughly grabs his head and pulls him up so he would look at her.

His blue eyes observe her a little confused, but she can still see the amount of want written in them. For a moment there, she loses it again. She lets her thoughts wander for a just a moment, thinking how good it would feel to be worshiped by him.

But, just that one moment is enough for Damon to dive in again. He moves back up, planting an open, wet kiss on her lips, slipping his tongue in her mouth like a devious snake that's playing her like a puppet. Jolts of energy crashing among them, like electricity charged between two energies with opposite effects.

She hates that she has to stop it. She turns her head to the side, detaching herself from his lips and trying to catch a breath.

„Damon, I...-" she starts, but stops right away, sighing frustrated, while he peppers her neck with butterfly kisses. But he can feel the stiffness in her body, and even though he can smell her arousal in the air, something feels off.

„What? What?" Damon asks her confused, almost whining. He stops his moves and looks in her eyes, watching her questionable.

„I-I...-"

 _What is she suppose to say?_

„I've never done this before..." she whispers, releasing a heavy breath after and closing her eyes desperately.

She doesn't feel him move or even breathe, and she knows the moment is over. Ruined. And she thinks it's for the best because it would be a collosol mistake, to go through this with somebody who she doesn't even know that well. But then, something else draws her attention. She opens her eyes, watching the ocean blue orbs above her and it shocks her even more.

„I think..." she mumbles, with her face squinting in a frown.

Damon is frowning in confusion too, just looking down on the girl in his arms. He's about to open his mouth to speak, but her green eyes bug out in alarm and she shoves him strongly away from herself.

„Oh my God!" she yells, as she sits up in bed.

„What do you-..."

„Oh, oh, no! No! No! No!" her hands fly on her head, brushing her fingers in her hair frustrated.

„-...mean..."

„No! No! Please, no!" she jumps out of the bed, looking around herself like crazy.

„...'-you think'...?" he says those words like he's testing them on his tongue.

He sits in his bed, looking at the girl, who glares back at him angrily.

„I-I-I... Oh my God! I'm a virgin and, and, and I was about to-...ugh!and with you! What the hell is wrong with me?" she screams as she starts to pace around the room, picking up her dress of the floor, her hands fidgeting from nervousness, as she tries to redress herself.

„Okay. Calm down." Damon stands up from the bed and tries to approach her. „Just take a moment. And breathe slowly." He holds his hands in surrender while she rapidly searches for the neckline on her dress, so she can slip it back on. „What do you exactly mean 'you think'? Are you not sure or...?" he lets the end of the sentence linger in the room, and better so, because she looks like a mad tiger, ready to rip him to shreds.

„I don't know!"

She turns the dress in her hands over and over again, not knowing what she's doing, sighing in frustration.

„Okay, just take it easy." he tries to calm her down, putting his hands on her shoulders and rubbing them softly.

She scoffs, shrugging him off roughly and looks at him with wide eyes. „How could you do this? I mean, I just got back from my date with Jeremy and you didn't even blink an eye, you just hump me down like some sort of animal!"

"Well, I didn't hear you complaining about it. I actually heard the opposite...and smelled it, too" he shrugs and smiles, giving her whole body a look over, before winking.

Her eyes are sharp with radiance, her mouth spit the words out in a fast, unapologetic manner and her skin is glowing with fury.

„Oh, God! You're gross!" she slaps him hard on the cheek and he thinks he's crazy because it turns him on a little bit more. He loves it when she puts him in his place. He loves it how rattled and bouncy she gets when he plays with her nerves. He rubs his cheek from the pain and licks his lips in delight as she turns her back on him, abandoning the idea of redressing and starts leaving the room.

„I can't believe I was even thinking about-" she turns in a fast movement, looking at him from head to toe over her shoulder, making a disgusted face and reaches for the door handle. „Ugh, I feel sick!"

„Hey, don't blame me! This is not my fault!" he yells back at her, suddenly feeling offended of her looks and words.

The door open widely, but she walks back a few steps, glaring angrily at him.

„Of course _you_ would say that! Ugh, I can not believe I actually thought that maybe you are decent enough! But, you're not! You're just as malicious and conniving, like everybody, say that you are! There is nothing good or nice about you!"

„Wow, hey!" he yells sarcastically. „Well, don't use all of your compliments on me!"

„It was right, what everybody told me about you! You are a monster! No wonder I hate you!"

She turns around, walking out of the room, and pulling the door closed behind her.

Of course, Damon being Damon, can't' let her have the last word, so he opens the door, stepping out of his room, without even looking.

„Yeah, well right back at you!"

He stops abruptly, almost knocking her down, as she stands in front of his door like a statue, only in her underwear, holding the dress in her hands, in front of her body, like she's trying to shield it from something...or someone. That's when he raises his head, going stone still, closing his mouth and making the coolest face expression he has.

Stefan is standing in front of them, a few feet away, his eyes almost falling out of his sockets at the sight of them.

He doesn't speak, because he probably can't make up any words from the shock, looking at his half naked brother and a half naked Bonnie Bennett, just walking out of his room.

His face expression reads confusion, anger, loss, rage. Maybe even a little embarrassment. But, Damon knows already which one of those emotions he's gonna have to face. He hears a silent exhale from the witch, standing in front of him, her heart beating like a drum and the next thing he knows, she's running down the hallway, slipping into her room and locking the door behind her.

He looks back at his brother, but before either of them has the chance to say anything, they both hear steps coming up the stairs and a voice calling for Stefan. They both know that voice too well, so Stefan simply nods his head to him, with those righteous, judging eyes and Damon walks back into his room wordlessly, before Elena has a chance to see him.

He is so screwed.

* * *

When you're alive for more than a century and a half, you learn to deal with a lot of stuff and shit thrown at your way. The best is to stay cold and unbothered by what other people think. But, sometimes, it's hard to actually stay cold, when the person who's shoving accusations your way is the person who knows you better than anyone.

For Damon, that person was, is, and always will be Stefan. His little brother. The insightful little brother. Smart and quick little brother. But, most of all, annoying little brother.

„Didn't know happy hour starts this early."

He rolls his eyes and sighs in frustration, setting his drink down on the bar, as the said annoying little brother enters his periphery. The clock ticking above the bar shows it's almost 11 o'clock in the morning, so he believed that Stefan was still at school and he had time to get stupid drunk and run off somewhere he won't find him until the end of the day. Of course, the younger Salvatore probably read his moves and intentions, when he escaped his bed this morning before 7 a.m.

„It starts when I want it to start." Damon says flatly.

Stefan nods.

„I'll have an espresso, please." He places his order to the blonde new bartender and then directs his eyes on his older brother, leaning against the bar. „So, Damon..."

Damon shakes his head. „Ugh... could we not do this right now, Stefan? I'm trying to enjoy my breakfast." He says before he raises a shot of bourbon to his mouth and swallows it in one sip.

„Do you know what I did this morning, Damon?" but Damon just shakes his head slowly, praying in himself for the conversation to be over as soon as possible. „Elena and I helped clean up the Bennett home house, so that her best friend, you know the one living at our house currently, can move back in."

Damon turns his head in confusion. „She's moving out?"

„Her father is coming back for the weekend, anyway, but she wanted to leave earlier," Stefan tells him, without dropping his eyes from him, sending him death glares and a message of what's to come. „Elena was surprised by her decision, so she kept asking and asking what was wrong and after Bonnie refused to tell her the real reason for it...she just gave up."

They both hold their eyes to each other, without a word. So, when Damon drops his eyes back to the bartender and signals her for another round, Stefan takes a step closer to him and asks him in a low dangerous voice.

„Do I really need to ask the question, Damon?"

„It would be better if you don't ask anything, Stefan."

The bartender sets a new filled up glass in front of Damon and before he takes it, Stefan grabs it and angrilly tosses it behind his shoulder, making it fall down and brake on the floor.

„What the hell do you think you're doing!?" he demandes the answer, ignoring the people around them, who're confusingly looking at them and whispering.

„You know, you trying to distroy my life and getting involved with every little shit around just to annyoy me is old news. I'm pretty much use to it. But, what I don't get is why do you constantly have the need to involve other people around in it. You want delivere me your promise, the etirnity of misery, do it. Torture me, irratate me, hell, kill me for all I care but leave Bonnie out of it."

„I think you're giving yourself too much credit, Stefan." Damon glares at him boringly, as he notises the manager of the Grill stepping out of the back room and making his way to them.

„Am I?"

Damon reaches for his wallet and leaves a couple of bills on top of the bar.

„Yeah."

„Well, I don't think so. What did you do to her?" Stefan asks him, his anger not lowering, as Damon stands up before answering to him.

„Sorry, Stef. I'm just not the kiss and tell kind of guy."

Without thinking, Stefan drives his fist against his face.

When he manages to straighten himself up, he's ready to beat the hell out of his little brother, but fortunately, another voice stops him.

„Hey, hey! You guys wanna take that outside!" the manager yells at them. „No fighting in my bar!"

Damon looks Stefan from head to toe, wiping the side of his face and snorting, as he turns his back on him and leaves the bar.

But, just as he steps outside and before he has a chance to reach his car, he feels a hand grabbing his shoulder and turning him roughly to face him again. Stefan grips his shirt in his hands, holding him closely and hissing at his face.

„I see you less than 20 feet away from her, I'll tie you up to the celling and stuff you with vervain like a freaking pinata, till I beat you with a bat. You got that, brother!?"

Damon pushes him away roughly and talks angrily to him.

„Get away from me! Don't you shove your empty threats on me, Stefan? You know I won't stand the-"

„What is it this about?!" Stefan cuts him off, taking a step closer again. „What is it about her that irritates you so much, you want to ruin her whole existence? I don't get it! Is it me or is it Elena? Are you trying to get to her through her best friend? Is that it? What? What is it?"

Damon can feel his anger slowly decreasing as he listens to Stefan. Everybody are constantly accusing him of hurting Bonnie and it makes him sick to the stomach to actually think about it. Was that true? Was he just hurting her? It's not like it's his attention, but his brother did always tell him, how everything he ever touched or did, broke down to pieces.

Every time, he had the chance to do something right, he ruined it. Nothing's ever good enough for anybody, no matter what he does. And he was only trying to help Bonnie. Now, he ruined that, too. He made her run far away from him, after he had her that close to himself, like never before.

„You got it all wrong, Stefan." He mumbles.

„Bonnie is in a vulnerable place right now." Stefan tries to talk some sense into him. „She's not herself and she doesn't know that she has to protect herself from you just as much like from any other enemy, and you are using that to take advantage of her!"

„I'm not using anybody."

„I'm not letting you go anywhere near her anymore." Stefan threatens him.

Damon snorts at the absurdity of his words. „You know, funny think about Bonnie, Stefan. She usually doesn't like to do what other people tell her to. And, last I checked, neither do I. So, why don't you go on with that plan of yours, and we'll see where that gets us all, hmm?" he turns around, ready to leave, but once again Stefan stops him.

„You know that the second she gets her old memories back, you're a dead man, Damon. Believe it or not, I'm trying to protect you, too."

Damon faces him again with a sarcastic smile on his face.

„Thanks, Stef. But I don't need that from you. I'll take care of myself."

„Just stay away from her. For your own good." He tells him one more time, as Damon turns around again and goes straight to his car.

„Will do, brother. Will do."

* * *

Forever 21, Nine West, Dorothy Perkins, Hollister. Those are the names that are flying all over Bonnie's room at the Bennett home house on Saturday morning. A number of clothes, shoes and other accessories splattered between three best friends.

Bonnie's sitting on the bed with her legs crossed Indian style, Elena is standing beside her going through the bags and pulling more clothes out, watching every piece with great attention, while Caroline is beaming with excitement, disrobing and trying on every shirt, jacket and dress she can find.

„Oh my God!" she exclaims, as she puts on a baby pink cashmere sweater, dragging her hand over the fabric delicately and watching herself in the mirror from all sides. „This is super soft! This is like, real, 100% cashmere!"

Bonnie bored shrugs her shoulders, completely indifferent about the clothes.

„Elena!" The blonde vampire's eyes wide at the mirror reflection, turning swiftly to face the said girl and watching the item in the brunette's hands like a hawk.

„That dress is absolutely gorgeous!" she yells, as she crosses over to the girl and takes the item in her hands, observing it over. „Oh, it would go perfectly with that cropped jean jacket!" she runs over to the sofa and picks up a few shirts, looking for the said jacket.

Bonnie notices Elena laughing at the side affectionately to the blonde. They both watch their overwhelmed friend, jumping around the room, going over the jewelry box and picking out the red chandelier earrings and screaming about how good it would all go together.

In less than a minute she's in the bathroom, changing into the said outfit so that her best two friends could get the whole picture.

Bonnie and Elena smile at each other, both enjoying the blonde's happiness and enthusiasm. It's a nice change of pace, especially after everything.

„So, how does it feel to be home finally?" the brunette girl asks her.

„It's okay. Things around the house are not that different, so it's been easy." The witch shrugged her shoulders.

„And with your dad?"

Bonnie lowers her look and sighs. Her dad is a different story.

Rudy Hopkins, the one she remembers, the husband of Abby Bennett and father of Bonnie Bennett is a good person. He's kind and loving, he takes care of his family. He loves his wife and his daughter and would do anything for them. He works at the Mystic falls township. His family is his goal and it is his biggest accomplishment in his life. He is the perfect husband and father.

However, this Rudy Hopkins, the one she's presented to, is a divorced man, father of Bonnie Bennett with a full custody over his daughter. He has a job of an Executive Administrator for Biotechnology, which makes him travel a lot, so he spends most of his time on business trips and meetings. His high school daughter is home alone most of the time, while he pays the bills and sends her money from his worldwide travels.

Bonnie would be lying if she says she wasn't a little reserved about him coming back, seeing as she has spent the last three weeks at the Salvatore mansion, and not one phone call from her father was received.

„I don't know. I mean, I was excited about seeing him and it made me super happy that he looked the way I knew him...but...something was just not right about this whole picture." She says honestly.

„What do you mean?" Elena asks carefully, sitting down on the bed, giving Bonnie her full attention.

„I made dinner last night. I actually cooked for him. I wanted us to share a meal, talk, you know, reconnect, but...he just denied, said he ate on the plane and went straight to bed. And, yes, I get that he was tired from the jet leg, I mean, I can understand that, but... This morning, before he went out, and he had to, because of apparently, he had some important business on a Saturday morning..." she stopped the ranting to take a deep breath, „he just dropped all of these bags full of gifts on me and left."

Elena looks at her sympathetically.

„I mean...is this how it usually is? He just hands me over a pair of shoes and we don't talk anymore? Because...if this is it...I'm not sure I like it."

The doe-eyed girl pats her shoulder affectionally.

„Well, your dad was always the detached kind of guy. He never really showed any depth in himself. I guess the reason for that was your mom leaving, but-"

„But, your dad loves you." Caroline cuts the doubleganger off, standing in the doorway, dressed in the outfit she was so excited about. Bonnie and Elena look at her direction. Obviously, she was listening to the whole conversation.

„There's absolutely no doubt about that." The blonde smiles sympathetically.

She diverts her eyes on Elena and gives her a mean look. „Honestly, Elena, how come I need to be the one saying this?", before she looks back at Bonnie, smiling again.

„Look, Bonnie, your dad is just like my mom. They work hard and they're not the _mushy_ , _feelings talking_ kind of people. And they don't have the need to tell us they love us because it's already implied. Just because they don't have the time always to sit and say it out loud, doesn't make them any less of the great parents they already are. And, they are great parents." She assures her.

„Thanks, Care."

Bonnie smiles to the blond. Honestly, she could not imagine her life anymore without this girl in it. She's so caring, good and always knows exactly what to say. She's happy to call Caroline Forbes her best friend. Not, that she belittles Elena, but the function she has in her life, right now is not very promising. The girl is a little too self-centered sometimes, but the funny thing about it, Bonnie doesn't blame her for that. Everybody else around them treats her like the queen, she's bound to start acting like one, sooner or later.

„Okay, changing the subject!" Caroline interrupts, with the clap of her hands. „I mean, we already have to worry about the vampires, witches and the impending possible death scenario we're all sharing, so let's just leave the parents by the side and not worry about it. As long as they okay and healthy and alive, we have no problems with them. Sounds good?"

„Yes!"

„Definitely!"

The trio agrees happily. Caroline catches the attention of her friends with her modeling as she walks proudly with her hands on her hips, smiling goofily, batting her eyelashes and spinning around the room. They laugh and giggle, hopeful and happy about the time they managed to spend together. And Bonnie is blessed to have them with her. Especially with all the events in the last few days. Aside from the fact, her father was home, she was back too and she was more than thankful for it. After the heated makeout session with Damon that followed an anger-fueled argument, she welcomed the distraction.

She thought a couple of days off is going to help her clear her head, give her a little more perspective about all that she's been doing lately, but unfortunately, it did the opposite. She never felt more confused and lost like this. Not even when she first woke up in this crazy world. And it was starting to mess with her sanity.

„I have a question." She says all of the sudden.

„What it it?" Elena asks, with a wide smile on her face, while she stands next to Caroline both dressed in brand new designer clothes, giggling and posing funny in front of the mirror.

They both turn to look at the girl that's still sitting on her bed, with her head down, and eyes glued to the floor.

„Bonnie?" Elena tries to get her attention, but she only sighed frustrated.

„What's wrong?" the blonde asks, both stepping away from the mirror and walking closer to their friend.

Bonnie raises her green eyes on them, her lips in a thin line, feeling anxious about it.

Should she tell them?

„It's kind of embarrassing." She says quietly.

„Embarrassing? Com'on, Bonnie. We're your best friends. There's no place for embarrassing here." Caroline tells her.

„Whatever it is you can say it to us." Elena assures her.

She brushes her hand through her hair, and diverts her eyes, looking everwhere around the room. „Okay. There is this thing, that's been kind of bugging me, well, not bugging, just I was wondering...but like, not in a sense that I want to do-... well, I just mean, it would be easier if I knew..."

„Bonnie!" Caroline cuts her off, managing to catch her eyes and hold them in a serious look. „Take a deep breath and just say it."

She looks at the blonde and then at Elena, and without hesitation, she just blurts the question out.

„Am I a virgin?"

Both mouths of her two friends close abruptly, wide eyes looking at her in surprise as they bi+oth try to take a moment and let the words sink in.

„Oh..." Caroline sighs.

„Wasn't expecting that.." Elena mumbles.

„When you say 'virgin' you mean like..." the vampire starts...

„Virgin?" as the doubleganger finishes.

„I don't know. I don't remember." Bonnie shakes her head.

„Right." Caroline nods lightly before she steps closer to her and sits down on the bed beside her. „What do you remember...in that department?"

„Well, I am still..." she says, before frowning. „I mean, I was... or I am...?"

„Okay, good, good."

„I mean, in my mind, I didn't even have a boyfriend, so..."

„And in this world, you do. Perfectly understandable." Caroline speaks as she nods reassuringly to her. She takes her hand in hers and talks sweetly to her. „Okay. Listen. You are a virgin. You and Jeremy were in love, and very much, but you just never got that far. With him or any other guy. So, rest assured, you are still a virgin."

Bonnie exhales deeply. „Hmm... Okay. Good to...good to know."

Somehow, she feels lighter and better at the fact. And especially, with the fact she said a hard 'no' to Damon before things went too far.

„Why- uh..." the blonde asks curiously. „Why do you ask?"

„Curiosity." She answers too fast.

„Hmmm...right." Caroline's eyebrows frown „Is that all that it is?"

„Of course."

But, the blonde is still watching her with her penetrating blue eyes with a doubtful look and she feels like any moment now she's gonna read it out of her and say 'AHA!'

There's one thing about Caroline Forbes, you can not have a poker face around her. She always knows how to brake you down.

„What?" Bonnie asks exasperatedly.

The blonde smacks her lips before she speaks.

„Well, generally, when a girl is curious about sex or something related to it, there is a possibility she has a good reason behind it. So, when a girl, let's say, asks about her virginity, it could mean she would want to do something about it." Her blue eyes glare at the green ones like they are trying to intimidate her. „So, Bonnie, do you want to do something about your virginity?"

The look on the blonde's face is so intense, Bonnie simply can't tear her eyes off-of her, so she answers like in a trance.

„No?"

„ _No?"_ the blonde tilts her head, repeating her words that sounded like a question.

 _„No?"_ suddenly Elena cuts in on the two and Bonnie silently thank the heavens for it, because it makes Caroline look behind herself at the brunette girl. It gives Bonnie a chance to take a deep breath and answer the question, once again, with absolute certainty.

„No."

„Ha..." Caroline looks back at her. „Are you sure this is just out of simple curiosity?"

„Yes." Bonne sighs in frustration, shaking her head tiredly. She sets her eyes back on the blonde with more attitude and talks with a little anger in her voice. „I think I deserve to know this kind of things about myself. And I thought I could ask my 'best friends' because they would be honest with me without any judgment. Silly me for thinking like that, ha?"

„No, of course not." This time Elena intervenes quickly. „Bonnie, we're not judging you. Okay?We would never do that. You asked, we answered. It's a done deal. Right, Caroline?"

„Mhmmm...yeah, sure."

The blonde nods, but the tone of her voice and the look in her eyes suggest she's not at all sold on this. Bonnie decides to get up and step away from the conversation and Caroline before things escalate to something worse. It's not a done deal, Bonnie is aware of it. Caroline will not let this go, so easily.

* * *

 _She guesses it again. It's the third time today. And last week she guessed it four times. She has a smug expression on her face that reads 'told you so'. Bonnie rolls her eyes._

 _„So you're good in a card trick. Whatever," she says._

 _She's sitting in her Grams kitchen at the table drinking herb tea and playing some cards. The past few weeks her Grams have become totally obsessed with some 'magic tricks' and talking her ears off about their descendants from Salem. Now Sheila Bennett was always a bit crazy and eccentric, with her teaching Occult studies, at local community college, her weird teas and historical possessions around the house. But there is no way she's a witch. Absolutely not. Bonnie refuses to believe that._

 _„It's_ _not a card trick, child." Her Grams told her. „It's magic."_

 _Bonnie snorts and laughs at her._

 _„Magic? Right." She says with absurdity._

 _„Contrary to popular belief, magic does exist, Bonnie." her Grams tells her in all seriousness. „It's everywhere, all around us. In the air, in the earth, magic surrounds us. And don't let anyone tell you differently."_

 _And then she takes a drink from her tea spiked with bourbon. Bonnie laughs in her chin._

 _Yeah, keep drinking your magic potion, Grams._

She opens her eyes in an instant. They go wide and she sits up, still in shock from the dream she just had. But, before she has the time to think about it, she notices her phone vibrating on the table beside her.

„Hello." She answers in a rush, not even bothering to see who's calling.

 _„Hi, baby."_ Her father's voice comes from the other side.

„Dad...hey." she frowns, as she stands up and checks the time. It almost 4 o'clock in the afternoon. She must've fallen asleep after Elena and Caroline left her house.

 _„You're at home?"_

„Yeah. Where are you?"

 _„I'm on my way to the house. I was thinking about grabbing something to eat at the Grill and wanted to cheek in with you if you're going, too. I could pick you up?"_

„Yeah." She says with a wide smile on her face.

 _„Yeah?"_

„Yeah, yeah. Sure. I would...I would really love that, dad." She says, her smile fading, as she feels the warmth around her heart spreading.

 _„Okay. I'll be there in 10 minutes. That' good?"_

„Perfect." She smiles widely.

* * *

If there's one thing about Stefan, that annoys Damon the most, it's his constant questions and conclusions about every little move he makes.

 _What are you doing? What are you planning? Don't hurt anyone, Damon. Why was Bonnie upset and half naked in your room? What did you do to her? Damon, don't hurt her. Damon, leave her alone. Damon, why are you playing with her? Damon, why is the sky blue and the sun yellow? Damon, Damon, Damon._

Well, tonight, Damon has a night off. A night off, from Stefan and his annoying questions, from Elena and her _to good to be alive_ look, and from everything else, really.

Tonight, he has a date. So, dressed in a Givenchy black shirt, dark jeans, Alexander McQueen boots and of course, his favorite leather jacket, he's on his way. His hair is flawlessly done in a 'just run your fingers through and be perfect kind of way', he's freshly showered and Jean Paul Gaultier perfume is wafting from his skin. He feels good.

And his car is ready for the night, too. He spent the afternoon cleaning and polishing his Camaro, giving him the extra attention that he hasn't done in ages.

He parks his blue baby on the street, swiftly getting out of the car and walking over to the Mystic Grill, with a smug smile and perfecting his sexy eye look to impress his lady, that is already inside, waiting on his, fashionably late, handsome ass.

When he enters the restaurant, he straightens his posture, pulling on the collar of his shirt, noticing the pretty woman waiting on him by the bar. She's dressed in a slutty dark red dress, 5" heels on her feet and nursing a girly drink in her hand. It's been a long time since he last saw her, but Andie Star was more than excited to hear from him when he called her up this morning.

He thinks that asking a date from a female that has absolutely zero to do with Stefan, Elena or Bonnie for that matter is the right thing to distract himself, once again.

 _Same distraction, different woman._

But, he has to get himself back on track. As in, back to his old self. The dangerous, handsome devil that could drop women down on their knees like bees on honey. He was definitely stuck too long in his house, with the witch as his only source of fun these days. And, despite how much he hates to admit, Stefan is right about one thing. She has to protect herself from him, as much as he has to protect himself from her. They are too different and a way too hostile to each other, that it would never work. Sure, they could have a great night, if they simply fall into the lust and sex drive that is undeniably bursting between them, but they would regret it. Especially, her. So, for her own good, he is trying to do the right thing, for once in his life. He is stepping away from her.

He starts to make his way over to Andie when something stops him. He doesn't see her, but he knows she's here. He can smell that hint of honey scent somewhere in the air, so he stops and looks over the restaurant in search of her.

He finds her in a secluded booth, sitting peacefully, sipping through a straw her large glass of peach iced tea, not paying any attention to the crowd around her. Her outfit is nothing special, just a pair of light blue jeans, white shirt and a comfy crochet cardigan. Her hair is in her natural, messy curls falling down her shoulders, framing her heart-shaped face perfectly.

Last time he'd seen her, was the night of their 'heavy awkward makeout session and anger filled discussion', before she decided the next day, that she was going home a day earlier before her father returned.

He notices her sort of sad face expression and nervous fingers, fidgeting with the glass in her hands, and it makes him question his next step. What is he suppose to do? He feels it would be a little insensitive to just walk straight to another woman when just three nights ago he was ready to rip her clothes off and devour her like nobody else ever did. And he curses himself, literally curses because he has no idea when did he become so concerned for the witch's feelings. The entire plan for his date falls into second place, just upon seeing her.

So, he takes a deep breath and directs his feet towards her, but before he can actually make his way over to her, she stands up with a frown on her face, marching to another booth. He notices her father sitting there with Carol Lockwood, Dr. Harris and another woman he doesn't remember her name. They all greet her with wide smiles on their faces, as she asks to speak with her father alone.

Damon turns his back on her, so she doesn't see him, but opens his ears to listen to the conversation.

„I was waiting for you, so we can order the food, but-" she starts, but Rudy cuts her off.

„I already ordered." He says. „I thought you did, too."

„And I thought we were gonna eat together." She snorts. Her father stays silent, so she continues. „I guess when you asked if I wanted to go grab a bite at the Grill, I thought you meant we would eat together."

„No, Bonnie, I asked you if you wanted a ride over. I thought you were meeting with your friends, so...we always do it like that."

His tone is suggesting that he is confused by her assumptions, and despite himself, Damon shakes his head and thinks what an idiot this guy is.

„Oh, baby girl." Her father continues with guilt in his voice. „I'll tell you what: let me finish with the mayor and then I'll take us both home, so we can have some dessert and watch some TV."

„It's fine, dad." Bonnie shakes it off quickly.

„In the meantime, you order up yourself some food and when you eat it, we'll be on our way."

„Thanks, dad, but I think I'm gonna go, now." She says a little nervously, her voice shaking. „M-Maybe meet up with Elena or...Caroline." she exhales deeply. „Anyway, I'll see you later."

„Bonnie..."

„Bye, dad."

She rushes beside Damon, without taking a look at him. He's not sure if she noticed him, but he guesses not. When he turns to look at her father, he's already back at his table, engaging in a conversation with Carol and the rest of them. He shakes his head, thinking _what a douche bag_ the man is when somebody tugs his arm and spins herself around him.

„There you are!" Andie happily talks into his ear, pushing her entire body on his. „I was waiting on you, Damon, I already thought you were gonna stood me up! You naughty boy!"  
He takes a step back, observing the woman and he can already see where the night with her would lead him, long story short: to his bed. But, then he watches the front door where nobody stands anymore, but he feels himself being pulled away in that direction.

„Shall we move to the table and order up...or we could just go to your place, right away?" the blonde smiles playfully, her hands gripping his arm muscles and chest and biting her lips seductively.

„Sorry. I think I'm gonna have to stand you up, after all." He says, a little surprised at his own answer.

„You got some other business to do?" she asks him disappointedly.

„No. No. I got another girl on my mind." Andie widens her eyes at him, lost for words. „Sorry, Andie. I don't need the distraction anymore."

* * *

She should've expected it. She doesn't know why she thought something was gonna go differently. Her dad just isn't the typical caring father, and Elena and Caroline already told her that, but she honestly hoped it would be different. That maybe, he would want to spend some time with her, have a real father-daughter conversation and maybe change their faults from before. After all, they are all each other have. They are a family, and to honest, she needs that, especially now. She needs somebody in her corner, somebody who she can rely on and who will tell her that everything will be okay, no matter what.

Stupid of her to expect that from her own dad.

She snorts and shakes her head, walking down the street, away from the Grill in the opposite direction of her house. She just doesn't feel like going home.

„Hey, hey! Wait up!"

She stops for a moment when she hears the familiar voice. She tilts her head to the side but doesn't dare to turn around.

 _Please, be imaging things._

She slowly starts to walk away, her arms crossed under her chest when she hears it again.

„Beeeennett!" his voice is exasperated and she can hear the steps behind her coming closer and closer, so she quickens her own.

„Bo- What? Bonnie! Bonnie!"

She hears a whiff of air shift around her and jumps up when her body collides with another one and as she looks up, he's standing right in front of her. Her heart drops in her shoes, at the sight of him.

„Hey! Do you not hear me calling for you?" he asks her as his hands hold her in place. „I was like yelling and nothing!"

He looks down on her, while she avoids his gaze, taking a step back so he would remove his hands from her. Her eyes are glossy and her body is stiff, trying to hide the shame and disappointment from him. He is the last person she wants to see now and somehow he just keeps showing up, making her highly aware of his company.

„What do you want?" she asks him, looking anywhere except him.

„Are you okay?" he asks with genuine concern, which makes her finally raise her eyes to him. She can read the sincerity in his ocean blue orbs, and she hates how much it appeases her.

„I heard your father and all...so..." he clears his throat.

She nods knowingly and a bitter laugh escapes her.

„I'm fine." She says with an edge, glaring strongly at him.

„You sure? If you want-"

„You know what, Damon!?" she cuts him off angrily. „I think the last thing I need or want right now is to be anywhere around you! So, would you just leave me alone?!"

„Hey, I just wanted to see if you were okay?"

„I don't need your pity!"

„It's not pity, you stubborn witch!" he raises his voice, too, surprising her all of the sudden. He sighs heavily and closes his eyes for a moment before he continues. „I just wanted to check on you, that's all."

„Well, I'm fine." she says, anger dripping from her voice.

„Okay. Do you need a ride home? My car's over there-"

„How many times do I need to tell you I am fine!?"

Damon raises his hands in surrender, as she passes right next to him and starts walking away.

„You know you're going in the wrong direction, right?" he calls after her, making her roll her eyes. „Your house is that way."

She doesn't even turn around, but she can see him being all smug, with that stupid smirk of his, pointing his finger in the opposite direction.

„I'm not going home, genius." She tells him, not stopping.

He's behind her in a blink and grabbing her wrist to turn her so she can face him.

„Where are you going then?" he asks her.

„None of your business." her eyes wide.

„I'm making it my business."

„Do you want me to set you on fire? Because I am more than willing to." she tells him threateningly, before she turns around once again and starts walking away. Of course, he follows her and falls into step beside her.

„Where are you going?" he asks once again.

„For a walk." she answers quickly.

„The sun is setting."

„Thank you, Captain Obvious."

„I meant it's dangerous."

„So is jumping off bridges with a single rope around your waist, and yet people do it every day." she says it with a fake smile and he snorts at her answer.

„I think comparing life in Mystic Falls to bungee-jumping is a little ignorant."

„Luckily, I didn't ask for your opinion, so-"

„Hey,!" he cuts her off, by grabbing her wrist again and turning her to face him. „I'm trying to be nice here! Why won't you let me?"

She takes a deep breath, hating for making her feel like this again around him. She feels exposed like he's trying to sneak into that little place inside her head and then when he finally does, he'll tear her apart.

„Because when I do let you, you use that against me!" she tells him, hurt writing all over her face. „You use me."

„Well, I'm trying to change that." she hates how sincere his words sound, more than she likes to admit.

„What does that even mean?" she asks confused.

„I'm not sure." he tells her, bending his head down and squirming in his stand like a fish on the ground. He's confused as much as she is and somehow she reads it as the first step in the right direction.

„Come with me." he says quietly, after a moment of silence.

„No."

„You don't even know where." he snorts at her denial.

„I don't need to know."

„Bonnie...please." He sighs in frustration. „I don't usually beg, and I am seriously breaking my old habits around you...so would you just do me the courtesy and just once agree on something without World War Three erupting between us?"

She bites her lip, thinking about his question. His perfectly blue orbs are practically begging her and she's aware he's doing it on purpose. He knows she can't say no to those eyes.

* * *

„You're kidding me with this, right? Damon, this is ridiculous!"

„No, it's not!"

„This is stupid! And I really don't get how it could be helpful to anybody!"

„Just give it a shot!" he tries to convince her one more time.

She shakes her head with a slight smile on her lips. He's really something. How did she let him persuade her to come with him, so they can just shoot around? Like, literally shoot around.

They're in the middle of the woods, far away from any civilization. The sun is already gone from their view, darkness slowly setting around them. The lights on his car that's parked behind them are providing the much-needed light. She's standing with her arms crossed over her chest, watching him perfect the targets. He lines up the three beer bottles on top of some rock, waiting for her to smash them into million pieces.

He stands by her side, proud of his work, wiggling his eyebrows at her and sending her a beaming smile. She hesitatingly bites her lip before bursting into laughter and finally agreeing to do what he asks her to.

„I can't believe you talk me into this." She says, once again shaking her head and looking down to search for the line he's defined with some leaves and sticks. Why does she even need a line when the actual shooting is happening from her head?

„Well, to be honest, that's easy. All I need to do is bat my hot pretty eyes at you, and you're a goner." She sends him a warning look and then turning her head to the bottles she focuses her eyes on them.

She thinks on how to smash these bottles. They're brown and dusty, apparently from Damon's basement where he went to purchase them, so they're definitely old.

She read all the grimoires she had, but now it's time to put all she read into practice. And she wants to impress. Not Damon, but herself. She wants to feel that trance that hypnotizes everything around her. She can draw power from all the nature that surrounds her. Because magic is everywhere.

 _In the air, in the earth, magic surrounds us._

She hears her Grams saying those words in the dream she had this afternoon. She repeats those words in her head again and again like a mantra until she just feels the meaning of them. Her lips part and she narrows her eyes in front of her. She can connect herself to anything she wants. Anything she imagines.

Even air.

Her eyes close, feeling the blood rushing through her veins, cooking in her like a hot lava, spreading the alveolus in her lungs, filling with oxygen, just waiting to explode. The wind picks up, her hair tickling her neck and shoulders, her hands tighten into fists. She hears the clanking of the bottle against the rock, as she finds that small particle of air that drifts inside the bottle, slowly falling down, only the glass broke walls surrounding her. Suddenly, the wind calms and she can't hear anything except the isolated, hollow undertone of the bottle.

She opens her eyes and fists, as the first bottle bursts into thousand little pieces, with a loud blast reflecting around the trees, causing the birds fly away in coordinated moves, following the spreading of their wings.

Her jaw drops, her mouth opens and her eyes wide. It feels liberating, like nothing else in the world. She feels the buzzing of her nerves and the warmth under her skin, producing goosebumps that make her smile vibrant and absolutely contagious.

„Oh my God." She whispers, her hand covering her mouth, turning her head to Damon, who's smiling, too, and looking at her with his pure, magnetic eyes, making it seem like he's seeing her for the first time.

She diverts her attention on the rest of the two bottles and this time, it takes her lesser time to focus and smash them away.

The roars of her laughter echo through the woods and she actually jumps in excitement.

„This is so cool!" she screams out loud.

„See?" Damon laughs with her. „And you said I was insane!"

„Well, I still stand by that, so..." she tilts her head in-joke, as he bends down taking new three bottles from the crate.

„Okay, okay, my turn." he clears the rock from the broken pieces of the glass and sets the new ones on. He picks up his air gun from the ground and loads it with fake bullets. He walks over to Bonnie, pushing her from the standing point, his hip nudging her hip playfully away and holding the gun in front of him.

He aims at the bottles, shooting away and producing even louder rackets than Bonnie. He shoots them in three quick moves, as he lowers his gun and smiles proudly at his work.

„Oh, yeah." He says in a low throaty voice, which makes Bonnie roll her eyes.

They take roles for a few more times, smashing numbers of beer bottles around the woods.

„How come I can't shoot from a gun?" she asks him after he blasts another round.

„You don't need a gun." He dismisses it quickly.

„Well, I want the gun." she whines.

„Nope." he sets the gun down and picks up new bottles for her to smash. He lines them again and turns to look at her. „You keep using those little magic fingers of yours. It's about time, you start embracing what it means to be a true witch."

„And smashing beer bottles in the middle of the woods is suppose to show me?" she mocks him, even though she enjoys it more than she thought she would.

„Yeah..." he shrugs his shoulders as he stands back next to her. He looks at her seriously before he continues. „And it's supposed to help with your anger, too."

She looks like she has no idea what he's talking about. But, it's hard to stay unbothered when he looks at her with such intensity, that she can actually hear the cracking of her soul. He turns his head away from her before he speaks again.

„When I was human, I use to do this all the time. Every time my father would be utterly disappointed at me, or my brother would do something better than I did..I would go to the woods and shoot some glasses or plates around. It was the best therapy there was."

It surprises her when he opens up like that to her, but it also warms her heart. He knows pain, he was bound to come across with it, during his long lifetime, and when he shares the feeling with her, she can feel his sincerity.

„Seems like that happened often." She comments quietly, her eyes requesting his with a distinctive, intimate look.

„More than you think."

And he responds the same. His eyes are pure, with some sense of warmth and clarity wafting from them. He feels the need to explain himself, to connect with her on some level. He knows and understands her feeling of rejection from her father and wants more than anything to soothe her ache.

„Family disappoints... it juts the way it is. It took me a long time to realize it wasn't my fault. They are how they are, just like I am, too. There's no point in changing, because if they're not willing to, why would you?"

He shrugs his shoulders as she narrows her eyes at him.

„Because you can." She tells him.

Her words cause something to erupt inside of him. It's like centuries of mystery finally unravels. It's the way she says it. The words just roll off her tongue, like they are the most logical solution.

The thing is, Damon was never the kind of guy who would just go and do something. He always had reasons. He's calculated and clever about all he does, even though it never seems like it. The thing that clouds his judgment is the _reason_ that drives that obsession in the wrong way. Most of his life, those reasons were always women. Katherine was his desire in the end and the sole purpose of his existing, so he lived his life according to that. Nothing was too much, too far, too excessive, because it was _for her_.

Until it wasn't.

Then, Elena became the reason and it started all over again. He wanted to become human, to be good, to protect her beyond all and it once again resulted in going overboard. He didn't care for anything or anybody else besides her because he thought if he did so, she would love him one day. She would love the person he would become one day _for her_.

But Bonnie's words are different.

 _Because **you** can._

And for a moment he believes he can. Not because someone asks that from him, not because there has to be some reason for it, but because he can do it. For himself. Those words just echo in his head, opening some sort doors for him.

However, he's far too damaged to be convinced that easily.

„It's not worth it." He denies it.

„How can you be sure?"

Her eyes are glimmering with the hope that slowly creeps into his own. She smiles lightly at him.

„No matter what you do or how much you hurt him, there is one person that always has your back, Damon. It doesn't matter how many times you disappoint, what matters is he's there for you and you are there for him, too."

She keeps shoving his brother towards him and he wonders what pushes her to do so. He knows that Stefan is the only person in the world he doesn't have to prove himself to, and despite that, he has his back at all times. Even when he doesn't deserve it, which is probably 90% of the time.

„Don't underestimate that bond, Damon, because it's rare." Her head bows down in a unmistakenly sad fashion and she practically whispers further. „I wish I had that. I wish I had somebody who would fight that hard for me."

She smiles sadly and his chest constricts at that. He can almost feel the pain and the desperation in her words. She wants somebody by her side. It's as simple as that. She wants somebody who would drop everything just for her.

And he wants to tell her how he would fight, how he would do that for her, but he knows she's too smart to really believe him. A month ago he was ready to serve her life on a silver platter for Elena's, and now she's supposed to trust him that he would lay down the world for her. Yeah, right.

„You do. You got your friends-" he starts, but she cuts him off.

„Who have a family of their own and would sell my life in the exchange of theirs in a heartbeat. And I don't blame them for it."

„But, you think your dad wouldn't do something like that for you?" he asks her, frowning.

„How could I know?" she snorts absurdity. „I don't even know the guy."

He's genuinely confused and interested why she feels like her life is less worth than somebody else's. Why would she think that she doesn't have at least one person in her corner? They had to be crazy not to protect someone like her.

„My father shot me and my brother in cold blood because we went against his beliefs." He speaks sharply, making her wide her eyes in horror. „He murdered his own sons. All your father did was refuse to have dinner with you."

„It's a lot more than that, Damon."

She shakes her head, trying not to pay attention to his words. She walks backward, standing right in front of his car, crossing her arms over her chest, like she's trying to shield herself from something. He hates to think, that he might be the thing she's shielding herself from, so he steps closer before he tries to reason with her.

„What, because he travels? Because he works a lot and doesn't spend time with you? You think that proves he doesn't give a damn about you? Bonnie, the only thing that proves is that he is an asshole."

She scoffs at his words, but he takes one more step closer, standing directly in front of her, his clothes brushing against hers and for a moment she shivers from the distraction.

„And I am one, too." once again he sets his eyes on her, looking at her brightly, making her heart flutter for a moment. „I am really sorry for the way I treated you, not just now, but in the past...I've never been easy on you and you have all the right to call me every ugly name in the book because I deserve it. Just don't think that anybody has any power over you or your life."

His hand raises to hold it on her cheek, as he bows his head to be in level with her. „You are the strongest, most amazing, beautiful, young woman I've ever meet and you're so good that it actually inspires me to try and be that good sometimes. And quite frankly, I am thankful right now that you're father is not spending this time with you...it gives me a chance to spend it with you and to get to know you better. And..." he sighs with a smile on his face. „I'm liking more and more what I see."

She feels her whole body vibrate with warmth and her cheeks run hot. Her lips part in shock and her fingers shake in excitement. She loves how sweet he is to her, saying those words and wiping away any doubt she had just a moment ago.

She can see his eyes traveling all around her face and she loses her breath when they finally stop at her lips. His hand slowly drops from her cheek and she closes her eyes when she feels him lean closer. She thinks about his lips and how good they taste when she runs her tongue over them. She thinks about the shiver she feels radiating from him when she lets his tongue inside of her mouth. She thinks about the goosebumps he wakes all over her body when his fingers brush the skin at the back of her neck and raise up to get lost in her hair. She's buzzing with anticipation to feel all that once again.

But, it doesn't happen. She can feel the air shift and when her eyes open he's standing a foot away from her, looking at the ground beneath them and exhaling deeply.

„And about the other night..." he starts and his voice shows a note of shame in it. „...maybe we did let things get a little too far. And it was as much as my fault as it was yours. So, I apologize for my part in it."

She swallows hard and nods her head in fast motion.

„Thank you. And I am sorry for my outburst, too." she clears her throat. „You're right, we're both at fault for it."

A heavy silence settles between them. The heated tension is replaced by something different, something just as edgy, but more awkward. She sighs deeply looking around herself, noticing that the night has fallen and she thinks how it's time for them to go home.

„We should go-" she starts, but he cuts her off.

„Okay, I can't do this anymore." he shakes his head, as she raises her eyebrows in surprise.

„Do what?"

„We're doing it all wrong." he steps closer, once again sending small sparks over her body. "every time it happens, we both run away in the opposite direction like that's suppose to make everything better and clearer, but I don't think it's helping either of us."

„What are you talking about?" she asks him slowly, frowning, trying to fake her ignorance.

„This. You and me." he points between them, his wide eyes looking desperately for hers to show that little light that can make things easier for him. „I have no idea what's going on here, but something is obviously there and the only way to find out what, is to face each other and deal with it."

She shrugs like it's no big deal, but he's way too confident about it and she hates the whimper that escapes her mouth and how she needs to close her eyes when his palms touch her face. He continues to speak when she opens back her eyes.

„I hate that I gotta be the rational one, because between the two of us, I'm never the one, but you make me want to handle this with care and maybe find something worth keeping."

She melts when his smile spreads across his pink lips and her breath hitches when he leans to kiss her cheek softly.

"Your move, Bennett." he whispers before he slowly backs away from her, leaving her in deep thought, while he picks up his air gun and the rest of the bottles, to put them back in his trunk. She stands in her place, not moving, shock running through her system.

She stands in her place, not moving, shock running through her system. She blinks rapidly, her hands clenched into fists, when she hears him telling her he'll drive her home. She sees him entering the car, acting all smug and without a care in the world. She takes a deep breath and nods her head.

 _Her move._


	17. Chapter 17 - You are the best thing

_**First of all, I'm sorry for any writing mistakes. This is a long chapter and I just lost my wish to edit it anymore...hope you give it a chance, there's a treat for you in the end...**_

* * *

Chapter 17 -You are the best thing

He patiently waits and listens to the steps coming from the inside after he knocks on her door. The tapping of her shoes against the hardwood floor, as she reaches to her front door and opens them widely.

Her face expression – surprised, to say the least.

„Stefan." Bonnie pronounces his name, trying to hide the disappointment and nervousness.

„Hi." He directs her his trademark friendly smile.

Her mouth tries to form words, but somehow she fails, so she just stands there in front of him, speechless and tense.

„I was waiting for you outside of school, earlier, but I must've missed you somehow."

„Yeah, you must've." She says awkwardly.

The truth is she saw him this afternoon, and Elena even told her he was looking for her, so she hurried home after her last class, just to avoid him. She hated doing so, but she really had no intention to engage in a conversation with him. She knew what the main topic would be and she would rather leave it for some other time.

„I was hoping we could talk." He says, questioning her. „If you can, of course."

She slightly turns around herself, looking at the direction of the living room, her hand scratching the back of her neck.

„Actually, I was just about-"

„It won't take long." He cuts her off before she has a chance to deny him. „I promise."

She bites her lower lip, her eyes cautiously watching the vampire standing on her front porch, hating how she can't find a way to avoid this.

 _Is it too much to ask for a meteor crash, right now?_

She sighs, nodding and opening the doors wider for him to enter.

„I just made some coffee. Come on in, we'll talk inside." She tells him quickly and for a moment his eyebrows raise in surprise, as he cautiously crosses the threshold.

He closes the door behind him and follows her in the kitchen.

When she sets the pure black coffee in front of him, he smiles at the Star Wars coffee mug and thanks her silently for it.

„Sugar or cream?" she asks him.

„None." He says, as she taps the side of her head and mumbles _„Right.",_ remembering he drinks it black and sugarless.

She sets her Teenage Daughter Survivor mug on the kitchen table and pours the cream in, along with three spoons of sugar.

„Listen, Bonnie." Stefan starts, „I know that this is the last thing you want to do right now, but I feel like I should at least warn you."

She surprisingly looks up at him, sitting beside him, as she twists the spoon slowly in her mug.

„Warn me? Warn me about what?"

He takes a deep breath before answering. „Damon."

He can see her wanting to roll her eyes, as soon as he says that name, but he chooses to ignore it and go on.

„He can be very intense and persuasive when he wants to be and it can be a lot to handle for somebody who's not used to him. Somebody who doesn't know how to read his intentions..."

„Stefan..." she tries to stop him, but he just goes on.

„And somebody who's over-trusting and gullible to his character..."

„Did you just call me gullible?" she asks, suddenly feeling offended.

„I'm just saying that Damon is the kind that can easily make you believe one thing now and the other in the next moment. Trust me, I would now."

„You're his brother and you speak so low of him." she says, frowning. Somewhere in the back of her mind she remembers Damon's words about family and disappointment and understands it, on some level.

„Damon cares only for the things he wants. He doesn't do anything if it doesn't benefit him somehow. And in this case, as much as it pains me to say...Elena is the object of his intentions. He does everything solely because of her-"

His words are cut off by the surprising sound of the doorbell and secretly Bonnie is thankful for it. They both turn their heads in the direction of the front door, as Bonnie frowns, trying to remember if she had some appointment that she happen to forget.

„You expecting somebody?" Stefan asks her.

„Not that I know off." She answers, as she sets the mug down and raises herself from the table. „I'll see who it is."

The bell rings one more time, as her steps quicken and when she reaches for the door and opens them widely, she's meet up with an unfamiliar face. A tall, well-built man in his late 20s, with brown hair and five o'clock shadow around his jaw, is smiling at her.

„Can I help you?" she asks politely.

He looks around the house, watching for the number it has on it, as he looks back at her, before talking back to her.

„Is this the Bennett house?"

„Yeah." She nods her head slightly.

„Then you must be Rudy's daughter, Bonnie." He smiles, as she observes him uncertain. „. I'm Max, Rudy and I work together at the Biotechnology Resources." He politely introduces himself, to which she smiles and nods her head.

„Right. Sorry. Of course." She shakes her head, thinking how maybe it's possible she even met this guy before, but she doesn't remember. „What can I do for you?"

„Is your father home?"

„No, he left this morning for his trip...to Japan."

The man nods like he just remembered and sighs in frustration.

„Right, that's right. Damn it." He has his hand over his mouth and seems to be deep in thought. „Did he happen to leave some documents for me?"

„I'm not sure." Bonnie frowns.

„Well, can you check? Because I have to hand in the report by tonight and Rudy said he would give me his notes on the research today. I guess it totally slipped both of our minds he was leaving before I could come by."

„Agh...sure." Bonnie nods hesitantly.

„It should be a 10 paper document written in German and there should be a logo of Biotechnologie innovations organization?"

Her eyes widened at his words and she knows there absolutely no way she can make an order in her father's study or even to try and find whatever's this guy looking for.

„Why don't you just come in and look for it yourself?" she asks as she steps aside to let the man in. He smiles gratefully and she blushes for a moment.

She leads him to her father's study and opening the door, she informs him.

„If that paper's anywhere, it should be here. He holds all work related stuff in here." She says, crossing her arms over her chest, as she watches the man slowly step inside of the room and walk over to the desk, with his back turned on her. His fingers linger on some papers, that are set on top of the table.

„You got what you're looking for?" she asks frowning.

„Almost." He whispers and before she knows it, she's being pushed roughly against the bookshelves, a hand around her neck, holding her in the air, making her lungs tighten and desperately looking for oxygen. Her eyes shut, but not before she can see the man's red eyes and fangs peeking behind his pink lips.

„Hello, witch!" he hisses in her face, and she feels a sting in her left arm, as he shoves a syringe in it.

In a blink, he's thrown away from her and struggling on the opposite wall where Stefan holds him against it. He gets the upper hand over him and shoves the younger Salvatore away, but not without tumbling along with him down on the floor. They roll over, fighting for dominance over each other.

Bonnie's vision is blurred out and her body feels so heavy like it's not her own. She can see the struggle on the floor in front of her, but she feels disabled to do anything about it.

The unfamiliar vampire grabs a chair and knocks it over Stefan, making him temporarily lose consciousness.

He speeds over to Bonnie, grabbing her by the neck again and sinking his teeth into her neck. She screams in pain, trying to push him off of her, trying to violate his mind or turn his skin away, but nothing works. She feels the magic around her, but she just can't reach for it. It's like the match is drenched with water and you can't light it up, no matter how much you try.

When Stefan stands up, Max or whatever he's called has her back crushed against his chest, his hand gripping strongly her neck, leaving bruises on. He sets his other hand over her head, the pose ready to snap her neck, as Stefan yells in desperation.

„No! Let her go! Now!"

The vampire laughs maliciously as he licks the wound he made on the side of her neck.

„You hurt her and you're dead!" Stefan threatens, his words spiking with cruel honesty.

„I'm dead either way." The other vampire shrugs. „Doesn't matter. As long as she's dead first."

She can see Stefan's look on his face and she can read his inability and lack of ideas at the moment.

That's when it hits her. The realization and the cruel truth of what is happening.

And she thinks then and there, this is the end. This is as far as she goes. There's no way around it. She knows what Stefan's thinking. By the time he even tries to move and do something, she'll be long gone. The vampire's just counting out the milliseconds when he makes that choice. Where he ends her life. And the thought terrifies her.

She had a close encounter with death before, like the one with Katherine attacking her or that vampire in Maryland, but something about this feels different. It feels final and scarier than ever before.

Her eyes shut down, a single tear escapes them and slides down her cheek, when she feels his lips against her ear.

„You ready to meet your maker, witch? Three...two..." he starts counting it off, and just when he's about to say one, she remembers something.

 _Don't think that anybody has any power over you or your life._

Her eyes snap open and she grabs the hand holding her jaw, managing to bite into it as strongly as she can. The vampire screams in pain, his hand covered in blood when Stefan runs over and tries to shove a wooden leg of the smashed chair in his chest, but the vampire manages to avoid it and thrusts his hand inside of Stefan's chest, making Bonnie gasp for air and her eyes widen in shock.

„No! No! Stefan!" she yells, running over to them.

The vampire's eyes widen, too, and he struggles to talk.

„S-SStefan...as in Stefan Salvatore...?" he looks him in the eye. „It's your lucky day, Ripper."

Max lets go of the heart and withdraws his hand out of Stefan's chest, as the latter falls down on the floor. He crosses his way over to Bonnie and roughly pulling her by the arm, tries to take a bite of her once again. She struggles tirelessly, yelling for Stefan to help her.

Just as he's about to bit into her, he hears the doorbell and instantly abandons his task. He grabs Bonnie by the back of her head and shoves her strongly against the wall.

„Next time, witch."

She falls down like a sack of potatoes and he bolts out of the back door, leaving both her and Stefan unconscious on the floor.

* * *

He feels awkward with her in the room.

In the past, he would give anything to get 5 seconds alone with her, before his brother would disturb them. He would feel blessed that she would give him the time of the day, without his brother invading the conversation. He would use those short moments to corner her and make her highly aware of his presence around her so that she could never ignore him again.

Right now, as he watches Elena pace around the Salvatore library, with her arms crossed under her chest, heavy sighs and river of words that keep spilling out of her mouth, Damon can't help himself, but to feel awkward. And in a silent prayer, that his brother would be home soon to end this mind-numbing cycle, in which he feels as if the brunette beauty is trying to choke him with words. He never wished more than now to see the annoying Stefan at the doorway to stop his misery.

„I just don't know what to say, or how to feel about this! I mean, as if I don't have enough problems, now he comes into town and brings me even more! How am I suppose to react on that? I don't even know what to say to him!"

To be honest, Damon doubts that Elena ever did know what to say or feel about anything. She's that lovely beautiful girl that stands in the middle of the room, with absolutely no plan of her own (at least not a smart one) and who just waits on everybody else to swoop in and save her. She never says anything smart or productive, she just whines on how unfortunate she is. She is the girl that cries and preaches on how screwed up _her_ life is when something bad happens to somebody else.

And Damon actually loved that about her. He loved that side of her, the damage that was so clear and depressing, that it warmed his heart.

Man, was he screwed or what?

How could he thought that this girl with a character flat as her flat hair could be the love of his miserable existence? Yes, he's an ass, but one thing about Damon for sure, is that is a man of action, a man with the plan, a man who would never spend his days just sulking about how sad life is, he would revel in it, hell, he would make it a National holiday with parades and go-go dancers.

„John is never going to be my real father, he can forget about me ever seeing him any differently than the annoying uncle that I just can't wait to leave town and spare me the atrocity of his company!"

Damon can relate to the statement right now.

He should've left the house when he had the chance. This morning, to take a walk in the woods or maybe go to The Grill or maybe even just pass by the Harrison Street, where a certain Bennett witch was residing in. He should've done that. No matter how much he wants to play the cool guy and wait for her move, he's super excited and even a little terrified of what and when she would do something. Or even if she would do something.

It's been three days since he last saw her and he's actually proud of himself that he lasted that long not stalking her. Usually, he would already be there and probably at his third screw up at a day. But, with Bonnie, he's starting to show the restraint he didn't know he had. The only problem is, he doesn't know how much longer it would last anymore.

He wants to see her, to feel her presence, to breathe in that spicy scent of hers. To look deeply into those forest green eyes and provoke that absolutely astonishing smile of hers. To hear her voice, even if it meant, she would scold him or yell at him-

„Damon?"

The daydream is rudely interrupted by the doe-eyed girl that is still in the room with him. He blinks his eyes to get back in the present with her.

„Are you okay?" Elena asks him frowning.

„Of course." He shakes his head like she's being ridiculous. „Why do you ask?"

„Because I asked you a question and you never said anything." She snorts humorlessly.

„Right." He narrows his eyes at the girl. „What was the question again?"

„I asked for your opinion. On what do you think I should do about John and his constant meddling in my life? Did you not listen to me at all?" she frowns again.

A distant sound draws his attention away from her again. The sound of a car approaching. A familiar car. The red dick mobile his brother is so fond of. Thank God, Stefan's home. He feels like smiling, but he manages to ignore it.

„Of course I did."

His face freezes a bit when he hears the car being parked in front of the house and the engine cut off, following the heavy breathing and wheezing of someone's chest.

„Well, then?" Elena asks him, oblivious to the sounds on the outside.

„Then what?"

He can hear the tapping of his brother's fast feet against the ground and opening the car door, after slamming the other _._

„ _Com' on, I got you."_

He hears the comforting and distant Stefan's voice, something urgent in that tone of his, that makes Damon stand up straight _._

„What do you think?" Elena raises her eyebrow at him.

„What do I think about what?" he whispers, not even sure what he's saying any more or just what the hell is going on.

He can hear the double steps, somehow misguided and messy, when his whole body jerks in alarm upon hearing a familiar moan of pain.

„ _Wow, wow. Easy."_ Stefan says once again.

He hears some weird shuffling and a heavy intake of breath from both persons, as the tapping minimizes to one person.

„ _I can walk by myself. Put me down."_

That stubborn voice of hers fills his ears and he instantly forgets anything around him.

„About my-"

Elena's angry tone is cut off, by his sudden disappearance from the library, as he rushes down the hall, to see his brother entering the house with Bonnie carried in his arms.

It's not his brother's loss of breath that unnerves him, it's not even the amount of blood their both clothes seem to be covered in, it's not even the fact that Stefan is barely standing on his feet to carry the witch in his arms. It's her face. Her eyes are tired and the white orbs are bloody, one side of her cheek is bruised and there's a faint cut under her left eye.

„Bonnie?"

He rushes over, taking her out of his brother's arms into his embrace, ignoring her cry and yelp, setting his eyes directly on her face, observing every little pattern of her injuries. He turns his back on his brother, holding the girl delicately in his arms like she's the most precious possession in the world. The cuts and bruises on her face make him mad and he looks back at the vampire standing behind them.

„What the hell happened?!" he barks, for a moment his eyes following his brother, that seems to be having a hard time breathing.

„We were a-attacked." Stefan manages to say, trying to catch his breath, as Damon turns his back on him and carries Bonnie to the couch at the parlor room. He doesn't need to turn around to see his brother is following them or to see Elena rushing in like a crazy girl because he can hear her footsteps.

„Stefan!?" her voice is on edge and there's no doubt she's worried by Stefan's face and his dirty, bloody clothes that cling to him.

But, Damon doesn't let his eyes wander on them, he doesn't tear them away from the girl he just set on the couch, his hands still holding her tightly, observing her face and checking her injuries.

„I'm fine." She tells him.

He doesn't listen to her words, even though he knows she said something, instead he continues to throw questions at his brother, not even looking at him.

„What do you mean attacked? By who? Why?"

Damon holds her face in his hands, observing every little spot on her skin, and he knows she feels subconscious by it, but he doesn't care. Somewhere in the back, he thinks he hears his brother's answer, but he ignores is, when his fingers slip down her neck and land on something weird. His eyes widen, his nostrils too, taking in the smell, and he knows it, before he brushes off her hair from her neck, noticing an opened wound on her shoulder, with half dried blood smeared around it.

„Wha-? You're bleeding-? Who did this? I'm gonna kill him- Are you okay? What the hell?!"

He feels unnerved and jittery. He doesn't know what to do first. He doesn't know what he wishes to do first. To rip this person apart, who ever did it, or to take care of her first? His instinct to protect her awakens suddenly and at this moment he's ready to do whatever it takes.

„Bonnie, are you okay?"

He's suddenly, rudely pushed to the side, from Elena, that's now kneeling in front of the witch, placing their hands together, asking whimpering, little questions they all wish to know the answer to. He ignores it, even though he's irritated by it because he has a feeling he's supposed to be comforting her.

„How the hell did this happened? Who did this?!" he asks again, walking closer over to his brother.

„I have no idea. Some vampire." Stefan emphasizes his words, irritated from repeating them. „I tried to heal her with my blood, but she rejected it. I think the vampire gave her something to disable her. She can reach her magic either." he turns around to step away from his brother.

Damon's eyebrows raise in surprise at his move, but he doesn't make a comment about it. He can see his brother struggling with something in his mind, with obvious nervousness in his behavior. He's hurt and pale and weak from the attack, but there's this twitch in his motion that tells Damon, that's not all. He looks at the two girls in the room frowning and quickly diverting his eyes on the floor. Damon's not stupid, he knows there's something here the younger Salvatore is hiding, so he chooses to ignore it, just for now.

„Where did this happen?" he asks him.

There a weird pause, as Stefan narrows his eyes on Bonnie, and she struggles the urge to roll her eyes.

„In her house." He says finally.

„What!?"

„What!?"

Simultaneously, Damon, and Elena fire up the questions, both taking a step closer to Stefan and watching him seriously, before both of them cast their eyes on the girl still situated on the couch.

„In your house? But, that would mean, he's been-" Elena starts...

„Invited in?!" Damon finishes furiously.

„Yeah, she invited him in." Stefan confirms it, with a nod of his head.

The witch just rolls her eyes and sighs in frustration.

„Bonnie..." her best friend whines.

„Why would you do that!?"

Bonnie's green eyes find Damon's anger filled ones, while they glare at each other. He's mad as hell, obviously, and all that anger is starting to transfer to her.

„I didn't know I wasn't supposed to." She answers bitterly.

„You didn't- Have you lost your mind?!"

„You never invite a vampire inside your house, Bonnie. Never." Elena chimes in.

„That's right." Stefan once again confirms.

„Well, I probably wouldn't if somebody actually told me about it!" she yells angrily. They're all accusing her of doing something she had no idea she wasn't supposed to, but nobody warned her of not doing it in the first place. She looks Damon in the eyes and then Stefan. „I invited you, and you, and not one of you had the decency to tell me about this!"

„You watch Buffy! You should've known!" Damon yells.

And yes, it's a ridiculous thing to say, he knows it, but he's so fired up right now, it's a wonder that everything around them is still intact. He feels furious with her. He just can't believe she could've done something like that. He feels furious with his brother because he knows there's something Stefan's hiding from them, he feels furious with himself mostly because he should've told her about this when she invited him inside of her house, a couple weeks ago and yet he decided to shut up about it.

Before any of them have the time to say anything else, the front door burst open and they all turn their heads in the direction of the entrance. All four pairs of eyes go wide, as the blonde female vampire enters in a hurry, with the local werewolf holding under his arm. They're both bloody and dirty, with clear signs of a struggle.

„We got a problem." Caroline exclaims while Tyler winces in pain.

 _Oh, joy._

* * *

„We were just walking through the woods, all alone, peacefully, when all of the sudden there was like 20 vampires around us!" Caroline says while accepting a cup of hot tea in her hand from Elena.

They are all situated in the Salvatore living house, discussing today's events.

„It was actually only three." Tyler says, from his seat on the couch next to Caroline.

„And they weren't just simple vampires! They were some freak shows, they were jumping around, flying, climbing the trees, it's like they were some kind of weird mixture of vampires and squirrels!"

Damon raises a curious eyebrow when Tyler chips in again, shaking his head at Caroline's words.

„They were just vampires."

„And they weren't alone!" the blond vampire says passionately. „They had help, probably some werewolf or witches, maybe both! I think I heard some howls and chanting in the background!"

„Only vampires." The werewolf beside her tilts his head.

„Tyler!" she turns to him. „Do you want to tell the story or you're gonna let me?"

„You're exaggerating!"

„I'm trying to describe all the details!"

„No, you're not!"

„Do you seriously want to fight me on this?"

„Okay, enough with you two!" Stefan cuts them off. „Look, obviously, someone is targeting us, all of us and I think we can all have a pretty good idea who it is."

„I really hoped not to hear of him again." Elena says frustrated, tilting her head up to the ceiling.

„So, big bad Klaus is back? We're screwed." Damon comments.

„Yeah, but I don't get why did he attack you?" Stefan turns to Caroline again. „Or Tyler? What would you have to do with the sacrifice?"

„Hello? Vampire? Werewolf? Key ingredients of the cooking spell?" Damon scoffs and shakes his head at Stefan. „And they say I'm the dull brother."

„Plus, we're Elena's friends, he knows we would do anything to protect her." Tyler comments.

„And for the same reason, he sent that vampire that attacked you and Bonnie." Elena agrees, pointing on Stefan.

„Except, he didn't attack you." Bonnie says from her seat on the couch. The whole gang looks in her direction. „Well, he wasn't planning on."

„What?" the younger Salvatore looks confused at her.

„The vampire came after me. He only attacked you because you tried to help me."

„He almost killed me." Stefan tries to argue.

„And then he heard your name and stopped instantly." the witch frowns and shakes her head, reminding him of the events. „He just took off."

„He probably knew he didn't stand a chance against us both."

„He was compelled. You said it yourself. He wasn't gonna stop under any circumstances. There was something more there. Like he knew who you were."

„I've never seen that guy in my entire life."

„Are you sure?" Bonnie squints her eyes, as she looks at him. If Stefan wasn't his brother, Damon would be proud of her sense for details and look at the big picture. But, the problem is, Stefan _is_ his brother and that means his assumption, that the green eyed Salvatore knows more than he leads on, is turning out to be true.

„Okay, it's obvious Stefan _doesn't_ know him." Of course, Elena defends her boyfriend. „Plus, why would he spare him? Klaus knows that out of everybody, he would try the hardest to protect me." She puts a reassuring hand on Stefan's shoulder. „You love me, so, you're his number one target. You would do absolutely everything to make sure I'm safe." And then she squirms and shyly looks over to the floor. „Well, you and Damon."

And it actually makes Damon cringe in confusion. He doesn't get her behavior. You would think that the girl should be trying to convince her boyfriend that she only loves him and there's nobody else. After all, that's all that she did before. And now, she makes a comment that makes everybody in the room raise their eyes to her. Which Damon notices and he's curious where did that come from? And how did the words, that would make him gloat a couple weeks ago, now had the ability to make him cringe in bad taste?

He always found Elena a bit oblivious and too trustworthy, but this makes him see a side very much like Katherine's. A calculating one. It's almost like, she can feel him drifting away from her, and she's trying to remind him of how he used to feel about her and how she's not blind to it after all. Like she's trying to convince herself, that's still the case and she's holding onto this thin thread how Damon is still very loyal to her and if she would ever want to do the crazy thing and leave his brother for some reason, Damon would be waiting for her with his arms wide open. Funny thing, how he doesn't feel the same.

His blue eyes drift to Bonnie, who looks the least confused in the room of all, from Elena's comment. When her eyes find his, a warm feeling spreads all over his chest and he absolutely hates it and loves it at the same time. He's still not sure why, or just what it is that's going on there in his or the witches head, but he's sure of one thing. His arms would be wide open for this one if she would give him the time of the day. And he's still hoping, maybe someday she will.

„And, yet those are the two only persons that didn't get directly attacked. How ominous." Caroline bitterly mumbles from her seat.

„Caroline!" Elena widens her eyes at the blond.

„What?" the blue- eyed female looks up at her friend. „It's true! You don't even care enough about any of this, as long as the Salvatores and you are in one piece!"

Some weird tension rises in the room, everybody deciding to shut their mouths and just let the girls go at it.

„How can you say that? I care, of course, I care!"

„Just not enough to see anybody else's point of view, except theirs or yours!"

Elena gasps.

„Because it really doesn't matter what happens, as long as we all know you got both Stefan and Damon wrapped around your finger."

„Okay, everybody calm down." Stefan interrupts the sparring.

The two girls just glare at each other, both surprised and hurt by their behavior.

„I'm gonna go get cleaned up." Caroline decides to cut it short, rising from her seat and exiting the room.

* * *

„Are you okay?" Elena asks her, as she uses a cotton swab to clean the cut under her eye.

„Yeah." Bonnie sighs.

The two of them are in the upstairs Salvatore's bathroom, about an hour after the discussion that was lead downstairs. Stefan had made a suggestion that they all stay at the boarding house tonight, seeing as it would be the safest for all of them, but not long after that, Caroline refused and decided to drive Tyler home, as Stefan went to clean himself up and Damon was left downstairs with his bourbon. Seeing as vampire blood was still not helping her, Elena brought the sanitizer and the rest to help Bonnie take care of her cuts and bruises.

„You sure? Because I know how much a vampire bite hurts."

„That's not the thing that scared me the most."

„Well, you're gonna be fine now. You're safe."

Funny thing about that. She knows Elena means she's safe because Stefan's there in the house and he can protect them, but Bonnie doesn't feel safe about it, at all. She knows that if by any chance, there really would be an attack on them if it came down to her and Elena, it's a no-brainer who Stefan would choose. He's a good guy and Bonnie has only respect for him, but Elena's the love of his life. He would do anything for her safety. For Bonnie's on the other hand, she's not that sure if he would risk it.

„Are _you_ okay? You were really insulted with what Caroline said." Bonnie comments.

It provokes a hesitation in Elena's moves, and she only stares at Bonnie, trying to read it out of her, if she, by some chance, shares the same opinion with their blonde friend.

„She was upset. I know she didn't really mean it."

It's a lie. They both know it. Caroline's words only sting that much, because they were true. Not to say Elena's a selfish uncaring bitch, but to some extent, there was some truth in them. The doubleganger seems to have more worry for the Salvatore' brothers, that the rest of them. It's like the only thing that's important to be preserved in this entire situation, is that the things between her, Stefan and Damon stay unchanged. Her and Stefan happy and in love, with Damon, the lurker, following her hopelessly.

To be honest, Bonnie felt a bit jealous of Elena's confidence how both of the brothers would do anything for her safety, but not at all surprised. After all, the girl is smart and not at all oblivious. But, the problem is, she seems restricted. Limited to see how everything around her affects her only. If something seems not to be touching the subject of her, she would find the way to make it about her.

The jealousy over that soon replaced the warmth of Damon's look to her. It was uncanny, how he made her think otherwise the second he laid eyes on her. Yes, she is a sucker for his eyes, but she still believes there was a bit honesty in them. And while nobody else noticed it, she could see it clearer than ever. It's ridiculous, how fuzzy and giddy that made her. What the hell is happening to her?

And, as though the question doesn't make her dizzy enough, the answer materializes at the opening door of the bathroom.

„Elena, you should go help Stefan. He's in the shower, but he needs blood. Go get him some blood bags from the basement." Damon tells her from his stand in the doorway, his tone almost a command.

„I'm almost done with Bonnie." The girl doesn't even look at him, as she applies the sanitizer on the witches face.

„I'll take over." He surprises them both with his words. Elena looks confusingly at him, while he glares angrily at her. „Go." He tells her once again, and even though she's not sure about it, she listens and drops all the items from her hands, passing him by and leaving the room.

Without a glance over to the girl that just left, Damon closes the door and walks closer to Bonnie, his eyes set on her without hesitation. She squirms under his look but hopes she doesn't show it. His eyes are terrifying. They're big, wide and so blue she feels like he's gonna eat her up any moment now.

 _Does he even blink?_

Silently, he takes the Band-aid from the sink and covers the cut under her eye gently. His eyes soften and his fingers brush over her face caringly, before they drift off to her neck, pushing the hair behind her shoulder and tilting her head slightly so he can see the bite.

„Does it hurt?" his voice is surprisingly quiet and affectionate, but she tries not to let him play with her mind again.

„I didn't know I wasn't supposed to invite him in." Bonnie says instead, knowing that the conversation is going in that direction.

He lets go of her, directs his eyes on hers more seriously, nodding his head.

„It was incredibly stupid of you." it's like he confirms that she just said she was stupid and it raises anger in her.

„You should've told me. But, neither you or your brother did. How was I suppose to know this?"

„Because you don't invite a stranger into your house." He frowns. „That's something your parents teach you."

„He said he was my dad's college." She tries to reason.

„So what?" his tone going higher. „How do you want me to explain this to you? If you don't know him, don't even talk to him!"

„That's rich. If I would've listened to that piece of advice I would be mute for the last 5 weeks."

„Don't get smart with me." he leans in closer to her. „Do you have any idea in what kind of danger you put yourself into?"

„Yes! I do! Because you keep reminding me! How long are you going to lecture me about this?"

„As long as it takes!"

„Well, I don't want to listen anymore-"

„You could've been dead and I had no way to do something about that! How the hell am I suppose to help you if you keep on doing such dumb things?"

„Stop calling me dumb!"

„I'm not calling _you_ dumb, but your actions are! It's like you don't even think about the consequences!" he blinks and growls in frustration and anger, as he turns his back on her, dramatically raising his hands in the air. „Jesus, Bennett! When did the tables turn so drastically, that you have me nagging at you for doing something you shouldn't?!"

It was easy to pinpoint fingers at each other and just blame everything on the other when really the both of them had a very wrong perspective of what happened. Or at least, they had a bad way of dealing with it. Bonnie was frustrated and scared from staring death in the eyes today and Damon was angry for letting her deal with it alone.

There's a slight moment of silence, as he turns to face her again. They both stay silent, just breathing in heavily, watching each other with all that anger and madness descending a little. He finally lets his eyes down from her, before he decides to speak again.

„You're gonna be staying here again. Both you and Elena."

„Is that really necessary?" she asks frowning.

„Stefan thinks that the vampire was compelled. And he has a free access to your house. So... yes. It is necessary." he tells her in his demanding voice.

Her eyes fall down on the floor again, and he hates that look of hers.

He feels guilty all of the sudden because he knows he's the reason she left the boarding house in the first place, and now she's forced to be here again. It turns his stomach around, this awareness that even though it's the last thing he wants, he intimidates her on some level.

„Look, I know it's not ideal, but I'm gonna try to make this the less uncomfortable for you, okay?" he assures her. „You won't see me, unless absolutely necessary."

Bonnie raises her head and her eyes widened in surprise.

„You don't make me uncomfortable." she shakes her head and answers with absolute honesty.

There's a small place inside his chest that warms up once again, as he watches her eyes glimmering in the light. Such small words, and so much power in them. The kind of power that makes him feel like maybe he's wrong and maybe he means something more to her like she means to him.

„Do I make you uncomfortable?"

The last question she asks in such a small voice, almost fearing he might say yes and he wants nothing more than to convince her the opposite.

One corner of his lips go up, and his eyes soften again.

„You make me a lot of things. Like, mad, insane, completely crazy..." he smiles fondly at her. „But uncomfortable's not one of them."

She replies with a smile of her own, before taking a deep breath and settling her eyes on the floor again.

„You know, when that vampire attacked me, tonight, he was really close..." she stops, almost afraid to say those exact words. But, she raises her eyes at him and gets enough bravery to continue. „He almost got to me. And I was already given up. For a split second, I thought, this was it. This is where I get off. And then I remembered something that someone told me once. 'How nobody has the power over my own life.' So, I fought back."

He smiles once again.

„Well, that must've been a very smart person." he quips.

„He's not all that bad." she shrugs in humor, before getting serious again. She looks at him with those bright eyes. „But, he is the only one who made me believe that even though the world seems crazy and unpredictable at times, I can be a hell of a lot more crazier and unpredictable if I want. So, thank you, Damon."

She kisses his cheek quickly and she's on her way to leave the bathroom in a hurry, but he stops her, with a hand on her arm, twisting her back to face him and a kiss on her lips. It's lovely and sweet but too chaste and too friendly. And it doesn't last long enough for her to really be pleased by it.

But he's so close to her, even after the kiss is over, he holds her in his proximity and she feels the goosebumps raising on the back of her neck. That stupid giddy laughter escapes her and seems to ease the tension.

„I thought you were waiting for my move." She tries to compose herself, but she can't stop the flapping feeling inside of her stomach.

„Well, I'm very impatient." He smiles warmly and then becomes serious. „Plus, you got really hurt tonight, I needed it to ease my anger."

He takes a step back and some kind of question appears in his mind.

„What was Stefan doing in your house?"

„He stopped by. For a cup of coffee." She shrugs and clears her throat, surprised with his changing the topic so suddenly. But, she feels like she can at least be honest with him about this, so she answers whispering „You know why."

„Did he bore you to death?" he rolls his eyes.

„No, he tried to warn me. About you." she answers.

„Of course." He sighs in frustration.

Bonnie frowns at him.

„I didn't say I believe him."

He looks seriously at her.

„You don't have to." He says as a matter of fact. „Everybody believes him. He's the better brother."

She looks like she's contemplating his words, that sound so bitter, but so knowing. And she understands him, on some level she finally feels like she's unraveling this puzzle piece that Damon Salvatore seems to be. She remembers the words he told her in the woods and the words Stefan had to said before that vampire attacked them.

Life can be a funny thing. She chuckles on the inside. No matter how many times had everybody said Damon was the bad brother, the evil one, the one that she should avoid in all ways possible...all the while, the real truth was how nobody actually knew him for real. Or didn't want to know him in the first place. He's damaged and he's the guy that falls in love with his brother's girl, but he's also so much more. He has so many of layers around himself, even though it seems he always wears his heart on the sleeve. He just wants recognition, someone who can see the reality in him and love it, just for what he is. A messed up, screwed up vampire that's stuck to live in this world indefinitely.

 _What's so funny about that?_ people would ask. Well, what's funny is that Bonnie thinks she might just be that someone.

„Well, he is the nicer brother. And friendlier. He did help me tonight when that vampire attacked me." She tells him seriously.

He has a knowing face expression like he expected her to say that to him.

She takes a deep breath, steps closer to him, unfolding her arms and raising her eyes to his.

„And, yet, somehow I feel like you saved me more than he did."

She tells him softly and honestly, noticing his eyes wide at her words. For a moment, he looks speechless, but not for too long. He is, after all, a master in disguising his feelings.

„You could be still delusional from the attack." He says in a joke, and she laughs warmly.

„Possibly." The smile flattens a little and she decides to be more honest with him. „Or I could just believe what I really believe."

„What's that?" he asks.

„That you might not be the better brother, but somehow, you seem to be better to me. And I really like that."

There's nothing he says anymore when she finally steps closer and kisses him softly. He responds to her all the same, enjoying the sweetness of her lips, letting his tongue tease her lower lip, till she grants him an invitation. She gladly does and it provokes a yelp from her when he easily wraps his arms around her and picks her up to delicately set her onto the sink. Her hands find their way to the back of his head, playfully gripping his hair, while he let his palms rub affectionately into her thighs. He loves how warm she feels, and she loves how sweet he can be.

Unfortunately, the moment is way too soon broken by the voice coming from the hallway.

„ _Bonnie?"_

They stop the kissing instantly and he takes a quick step back, just as she comes back down from the sink and the bathroom door open.

„Hey, Bon-" the blonde's words are cut off from the sight inside. She frowns, not understanding why are the two of them in a closed up bathroom.

„Hey, Care." Bonnie hopes her voice is strong enough to fool the insightful female vampire.

„What's going on?" she asks suspiciously, crossing her arms under her chest.

Bonnie looks back at Damon with her eyes wide, but his facial expression is read less. And just like always, he's quick to deny anything.

„I'm gonna get this back.." He picks up the first aid kit and turns to leave. It's confusing and surprising how quickly he is to deny it, and Bonnie's not sure if she likes it. When he reaches the door, he takes no look at Caroline, but still, decides to acknowledge her.

„Blondie."

Of, course, as much as Damon is a good actor, there is no way you can easily fool Caroline Forbes. Bonnie knows that the moment he leaves and the blonde's eyes look down at the floor to shake her head disapprovingly, before bringing them back on Bonnie. She's dead serious and she means business, but Bonnie's not sure she can handle that right now.

„How's Tyler?" She tries to change the subject.

„He's better. I dropped him home and decided to take up on the offer for a sleepover. I hope you don't mind." the vampire says, as she steps inside of the bathroom.

„Of course not. I'd love that." Bonnie attempts to smile.

„So, why were you in a closed up space with Damon?" Caroline cuts that smile off her face, in a whiff, just like that.

„I used the first aid kit." The witch tries to shrug carelessly. „He just came to get it...back."

„Is that all?" the blonde raises her eyebrows.

„Of course. What else could it be?" she asks with a fearful smile.

 _God, she's bad at this._

Caroline takes a careful look around, stepping slowly and carefully coming closer to her friend, holding a strong intimidating look on her face.

„Nothing." the vampire decides to drop it.

Bonnie takes a deep breath, smiling aimlessly and trying to distract her friend.

„You wanna watch a movie? Maybe some Nicholas Spark? I think it would come in great after the day we had."

She doesn't wait for her friend to respond, she just passes by her and leaves the room as quickly as she can, while the blonde stays standing there in the middle of a bathroom, from where the two people who you could never set in the same room before, just run off like they were both caught with their hands in a cookie jar.

 _Oh, and what a cookie jar that is_.

* * *

Stefan Salvatore is a simple guy. He always loved to think like that. He never goes above and beyond the things he wants, because he knows there are limits to respect. He loves restricted boundaries and he loves to act on them. Moderation is the keyword. The word he loves to guide himself to and never goes over the top, no matter what it means to him.

At least that was, what he was like back when he was human.

Becoming a vampire changed him. The limits he always was so passionate to respect, became unavoidable to break. He's a bloodthirsty creature of the night, so why the hell should he respect those. It's liberating to go against everything he believed once and to bathe in that bloody rule breaking freedom.

But, the problem about vampirism, is that also affects your character. It emphasizes everything you once were. So, the only thing stronger than his thirst for blood is his obsession to make and respect boundaries. He tears into someone's throat and revels in the amount of blood that it makes his victim lose their heads, (literally) and then he becomes so guilty, he wants to repair them. So he tries to reattach their head back to their bodies. That's what brings him so much pleasure, that he can bring so much havoc and make something of it. The fact that he loves to bring chaos and destruction and the fact that he wants nothing more than to straighten that up. Almost like art.

And when those two clash together, the Ripper is born.

The Ripper is the part of him he hates. He treats it as a separate individual, that shows it's ugly face and destroys everything around him. Everything he tried to build and everything he tried to have at some point in his life, it all gets stripped away, when _he_ appears. And the really nasty thing about _him_ is that Stefan can actually feel his presence and he can almost know when he's going to show his true face.

Yesterday morning, he felt him coming. And he can still feel him, just scratching at the surface, trying to get out and relive again. It irritates him and at the same time terrifies him because it can ruin everything he has at this point. Which to be honest, was a lot more than he had in decades.

„It's a funny little thing, isn't it?" he hears his brother's voice from behind him. He turns his head in his direction, watching the older Salvatore stroll into the library, with a frown on his face.

„What is?" he asks quietly.

„Life." Damon answers after a moment of silence. „It's boring and nasty, but it's funny all the same. Especially for a vampire."

He has no idea what came into his brother right now, but he accepts he's moody and prick-ish when something disturbs his rather peaceful day. And yesterday, there really was a lot that disturbed him.

„I guess."

„No matter how much you try and do something your way, it just tricks you and turns it upside down in a blink of an eye." Stefan watches him raise his hand and point his fingers as he continues. „I can count it on my one hand, how many times, have things went exactly the way I planned them. They always seem to backfire."

„What the hell are you babbling about?"

„You." his look on him is steady and dangerous. „Why don't you tell me what the hell really happened at Bonnie's?"

„I already did. There was a vampire and he-"

His words are cut off, by his brother pulling him up and smashing his back on the wall in vampire speed, spilling the drink that was in his hand.

„Don't fucking lie to me, Stefan or I will fucking kill you!" he hisses and he leans closer to make his threat seem more real. That's an old trick. „What happened yesterday?!"

„I told you-"

Damon pushes him up the wall, knocking the back of his head strongly against the wall.

„I smelled her blood on you the moment you stepped inside of the house! Tell me the truth, before I tell Elena and Bonnie what I think really happened?" he hisses through his teeth, anger spilling from his words.

Stefan pushes him off of himself and glares at him with the same amount of anger.

„What do you think that really happened?"

„Was there even another vampire involved or did you just made that up?"

„Of course not. Bonnie told you this, too. Why would she lie about it?"

„Then explain to me, how did you recover from the attack so quickly?" his brother once again tries to get into his face. „Bonnie said the vampire almost pulled your heart out and I know for a fact, that is not an easy kick that you can recover from! So, you better tell me, before I go ahead and do the same to you right now. Because I know Bonnie didn't offer you her own blood."

Stefan feels dumbfounded. Just this morning, he was at Bonnie's trying to convince her how fooling around with Damon is the worst possible idea and how malicious he really was, thinking that was the only right thing he could do. And now, he's being lectured by the same said evil-minded brother, about the wrong things he's been doing. What the hell was going on?

„Ther were some opossums around-" he tries to lie, but he knows it a cheap attempt and he's cut off before he has the time to even think what he could lie about.

„And that is still not enough for you to recover so quickly! Only human blood can do that, Stefan."

„I didn't drink from her." he watches Damon scoff in irritation, making it clear he doesn't believe him. „I didn't!"

And then, he remembers last night, he remembers hearing the voices of the above floor, the three girls that were giggling and playfully arguing about which movie they will watch, forgetting all the chaos from that day and the fights they had with each other. He remembers hearing the apology exchange between his girlfriend and her blonde best friend and it makes him want to puke. It makes him want to tear out his gut away, thinking about Elena and her face, and how much pain it would bring if she actually knew the truth of what he did. He could've ruined it all, like nothing.

All for what? For a little taste of blood?

Blood, that seemed like a calling to him, blood that seemed to sing to him, one that woke up in him a new kind of temptation he was secretly yearning for, so when he saw it, slowly gliding down her neck, practically going to waste... It was music, literally music to his ears, the drops of that red honey like liquid against her soft and tender skin. It didn't matter who she was, it didn't matter how wrong it was, it didn't matter that he just drained her 70-year-old neighbor that came to ask her for a cup of sugar. He still _wanted_ that blood, no, he _needed_ to taste it, to take a just a little bit, just enough to sooth his ache for it... So, was that really that wrong?

„But, I did... tasted her blood." he finally admits to his brother. He has that dreamy primal stare in his eyes like he was still enjoying it like he could still feel it in his mouth. „Just a little. The vampire bit her and she was bleeding from the wound and...it was calling me...The smell, the aroma...it filled my nostrils and I had to...just one little taste...I couldn't ignore it"

„I will murder you!" Damon hisses through his teeth, watching him steadily and mad, his fists tightly gripping.

„Why?" Stefan says in a mocking tone, starting to lose his clarity. „It's not like it's something you never did! You! You know how her blood tastes like and you can't tell me that you would waste the opportunity! You, Damon! She's one of the sweetest I ever tasted!"

Next few seconds happen in a blur. He feels his body being pushed back against the wall of the library and another stake going through his stomach.

He suddenly feels the pain and it's like it wakes him up from some sort of dream world. He realizes his behavior and his words and how they come to bite him in the ass. He realizes what he just vocalized and he feels ashamed because of it. He realizes just how close he is to losing himself once again to his other half. And he can't hate himself enough for it.

His body slides down to the floor, his fists tightly gripping the stake that's sticking out of his abdomen as, Damon takes a step back, looking down on him.

„Get a grip on yourself, Stefan! I don't need you on Ripper binge, right now!"

„What am I doing, Damon?" he starts to panic, leaving the stake inside as a reminder of how far away he's ready to go. „I can't- I can't stop him! I get one taste of human blood and he's out of me! I can't control him!"

„Who?" Damon looks at him like he just grew two heads.

„The Ripper!"

His brother shakes his head in irritation, stepping closer to his brother, kneeling down and suddenly without a warning, roughly pushes the stake out of his gut, making Stefan yell and curse in pain. He drops the bloody stake down on the floor and glares at him.

„He's you, you idiot! You're the Ripper! God, when are you gonna make peace with this, Stefan? You don't have a split personality disorder! You're a vampire that craves what he wants! Blood. It's the most normal thing that exists, like birds and clouds. Just get over it, man! You're dead! You feed on the living so that you can live! The Ripper is just some stupid old tale from the past, that human's made up and that you stupidly adapted to! You're not a Ripper, Stefan! YOU'RE A VAMPIRE!"

It's not so easy for Stefan to understand the truth behind Damon's words, even though he feels like they are going to come to his head, sooner than he thinks. But, sometimes, it's easier to just ignore it. What is easy, though is to understand Damon's wrath about all of this. He always hated this side of Stefan and even though he was probably the only person who could really help him, he was always the one Stefan pushed the most away.

He watches his big brother roll his eyes and take a seat next to him, leaning on the wall with their backs for support, while Stefan tries to catch his breath and wait for the healing process to begin. Once he feels like he can finally talk normally once again, he starts the conversation.

„I swear to you, I didn't want to hurt her."

He just doesn't see it that way. He did taste her blood, but he didn't exactly suck it out of her. It was already out. So, he refuses to admit he really hurt her, when she was already hurt in the first place. He did try to heal Bonnie right away, but her body refused it. So, it wasn't really his fault?

He knows Damon, being a vampire, would understand it, even though it makes him curiously mad and weirdly vengeful towards him.

„Okay, bro. I believe you." he says in a bored tone. „But, you needed to get a grip on yourself, Stefan. We got Klaus to handle right now, and we can't have you fighting with yourself. I'm capable of having only one enemy at the time, so don't go and make yourself another one for me."

The tone of his voice is emotionless and flat, but if anybody knows what it means it's Stefan. Out of all the enemies, they would have to face, the last person they both would want to confront is each other. And right to this point, in a way, Stefan felt as if they were really each other's enemies, fighting over dominance, fighting over the family name, over a girl, over God knows what... when really all that did was distracted them from the real enemy they would be facing.

And it's time that it stops. It's time they stand by each other and stop trying to fight over stupid little things that have no sense at all.

„I'll try." he answers and he really means it. „I'll fight it. Just, please don't tell anything to Elena or Bonnie."

Damon tapes his knee in confirmation., before pointing a finger threatfully at him.

„You touch her again and I will kill you, for real." his tone is serious and Stefan raises his eyebrows in surprise.

„You also gossiped about me." his brother says in light tone after a moment of silence. „I'm not sure which one I hate more. The 'you feeding on Bonnie' or the 'you gossiping me'."

He flinches at the feeding part of the sentence, but he decides to ignore it and answer him for real.

„I was looking out for Bonnie."

„You don't need to look out for her." Damon's irritated tone surprises him. it's almost like they switched places and he has a feeling Damon's trying to keep him away from her. „She's a grown ass witch. She can take care of herself."

„She's confused. She needs our help-"

„She needs less of your meddling around."

The answer is exasperated and something in it makes Stefan frown in thinking.

"What about _your_ meddling around her?"

When Damon turns his face to him, Stefan can clearly read something that was not here before. And his next answer confirms it, too.

"That's different."

"Yeah, right. You need to back off-"

"I need you to stop trying to get in between us." Damon cuts him off. „Despite what it might seem to you, I'm actually helping her and she actually trusts me. So, stop trying to get inside of her head. I don't need your speeches about how good or nice or beautiful she is because I'm very well aware of that by myself. So, leave it alone, brother."

To actually hear those words coming out of Damon's mouth is what leaves Stefan speechless. It makes him think about Damon's concern when he brought Bonnie yesterday at the house. It reminds him of his brother's latest escapades for the single reason of helping her out, and it reminds him of the pain he just endured when he shoved a stake right through his stomach because he was angry for Stefan's bloody indiscretion.

Damon's reaction is not a surprise for Stefan. He's used to his older brother's overboard responses to certain situations because it's in his nature. He's too temperamental, too destructive and way too passionate when somebody touches in his business the wrong way. What confuses Stefan is...what sort of business Damon had with Bonnie? And was it just business, after all?

„You staked me." he states it, with his jaw hanging open.

„I had to. You were starting to piss me off." Damon snorts.

Stefan watches his brother's face in confusion and silence.

„What?" Damon shakes his head in humor. „You pissed at me, now? You wanna get back at me?"

„No, no." he frowns „Just... I didn't realize..."

„What?"

„You care about her."

Damon turns his head away from Stefan as if he's refusing to answer him.

„Shut up, Stefan."

„You do, don't you?"

„Stefan."

„Don't you?"

Stefan's questions are loud and clear, and it already too late to deny it, so the only thing Damon can do is huff in irritation.

„I can't believe it." Stefan states „I mean, I can't believe I didn't realize it sooner."

„Well, to be honest, you were always a little slow."

They both laugh and it brakes the heavy tension between them. It's like some awful uneasiness is finally lifted from both of their chests and a sense of familiarity settles in. Stefan can really admit he feels comfortable with Damon like he can lower his defenses and just be honest with him. That's something he hasn't felt in decades. Something he thought they lost and they would never regain back again. The feeling of connection, the feeling of closeness, the feeling of family.

That's exactly what makes him worry about Damon and about the things that concern him.

„You know what you're stepping into, right?" he asks him, lifting his eyebrows to emphasize the words. „She is Bonnie Bennett."

„You make it sound like she's Darth Vader." Damon rolls his eyes, to which Stefan shrugs his shoulders.

„To you, she just might be. You did call her _the bane of your existence_ , with those exact words."

„Well, I might've been a tad over dramatic, back then." the older Salvatore shrugs. „She did try to fry me."

At Damon's attempt of reasoning, Stefan just shakes his head.

„And what if she remembers?"

That's the real question. The one that terrifies Damon all the same. What happens if she gets all her memories back and remembers who he actually is to her? What if she reverts back to the witch that just wants to hit him with aneurysms over and over again? What if, despite the time they spent together, despite how much she might like him now, all her previous feelings (or rather non-existing feelings) come back and she ends up hating him even more?

„Then I guess, she'll go back to hating me." he shrugs again, like it's no big deal, even though it's the worst possible scenario.

How funny it was, that just a couple weeks back, when this whole thing just started, he was the only one who was campaigning and pressuring for Bonnie to get her back the way she was, and right now, he couldn't think of the worst thing happening than that?

„So, right now, she doesn't hate you?"

He shakes his head like he has no idea what she feels, which to be true, in reality, he doesn't know.

„What exactly is going on with you two?"

„It's not for your ears, little brother."

„Damon."

Stefan's warning tone irritates him beyond anything, so he rolls his eyes once again, before answering.

„What do you want me to say, Stefan? You saw her coming out of my room half naked. What do you think we were doing? Let me give you a hint: we weren't doing laundry."

„That's exactly why I'm worried. She will kill you if she remembers. She will think you took advantage-"

„Nothing happened. We didn't get that far. Yet." he smirks at the end.

„Damon." again with the warning tone.

„Just shut up, Stefan. We're having a great brotherly moment here." he taps his brother knee once again. „Don't ruin it with being yourself."

There's only more silence before Stefan tells him what he really wants for him.

„I just wish, things would be somehow simpler."

Damon smiles bitterlly.

„Well, where I'm involved, they never are."

* * *

When he enters the house, he can already smell her. She's in the house, and more importantly, she's alone. He listens to the sounds from the kitchen and stands at his place, not moving. Everybody else is gone, Stefan took Elena so that she can talk with Jeremy and Jenna and make them go somewhere else, where they can be safe.

And she's here. He can hear the sound of her breathing, her feet padding against the kitchen tiles and the sweet humming of her voice, that lately makes him run in her direction. Just like now. His feet are crossing his way over to the kitchen, where she is.

The words his brother said to him about an hour ago are still ringing in his head, but he tries his best to ignore them. Stefan has really taken upon himself to resolve all this stuff between them. And even if Damon actually believes and knows, all Stefan said is right, he doesn't necessarily have to listen to them.

He pushes the door open and she's standing next to the fridge, looking for something in it. He stands there for a moment observing her, not wanting her to notice him yet. Her hair is loosely hanging over her shoulders, she's dressed simply, a gray t-shirt and jean shorts, the remains of her clothes from her stay at the Salvatore boarding house from last time, no doubt. Her feet are bare and her toenails are freshly painted in a pink color. The paint is still not fully dried because he can smell the chemicals in the air.

He clears his throat, but when she turns to look at him, she doesn't seem surprised at all. There a hint of a knowing face on her, as if she expects him to appear when nobody else is in the house.

„What are you doing?" he asks her, crossing his arms over his chest.

„Looking for food." She says as a matter of factly. „I do get hungry, being a human and all that."

He nods and smiles at her answer. He watches her as she takes some bread and peanut butter from the fridge and puts it on the kitchen counter. She starts making herself a sandwich, while he hesitantly takes steps closer to her.

He diverts his look from her and licks his lips, when he stands next to her, leaning his palms on the counter next to her. He observes her for a moment, before placing a hand over hers in which she holds the butter knife in and her eyes snap quickly to him. His face is soft and his lips are slightly smiling.

„Let me." He tells her dearly.

She lets him do what he wants, even though she can't hide the confusion written on her pretty face, as he takes the butter knife and spreads the peanut butter on the bread. She watches him do it, leaning on the kitchen isle with her elbows and her face in her palms, with a content expression. He turns around to reach for two plates and sets one in front of her.

When he hands her the sandwich, he sets the other plate in front of himself and quickly makes himself a sandwich too.

They eat in silence for a couple of minutes before he decides to he break it.

„You want to go out? Have some fun and real food?"

„I...uh...What? Where?" she can't really hide her surprise because she doesn't know exactly what he has in mind and somewhere in the back of her head, she thinks he's asking her on a date.

„There's a sports bar at the border of Charlestown. I hear they have mean spicy wings." he says it so casually, so she dismisses the idea of a date. That's definitely not it. Still, she feels likes she has to deny him for some reason.

„Well, I...I have homework and..."

„And?" he raises his eyebrows at her.

„And I'm not supposed to be hanging around when there's a vampire on the loose looking for me... and probably plotting my death..."

„There's always someone plotting our deaths, doesn't mean you're sentenced to a prison for the rest of your life."

„Well..."

"Unless there's some other reason you wouldn't want to go with me?"

He knows how asking those kind of questions limits her answer. Because no matter what she says, she's gonna be the one pulling the trigger. Starting the subject, that's probably better left behind, in the 'do not discuss pile'. He thinks how maybe he's actually letting her run far away from him.

But, instead, she narrows her eyes at him.

„But it's not a date, right?"

„Date?" he asks dumbfounded. He shakes his head like he doesn't recognize the word. Because, he, Bonnie and date are not the words that usually go in a sentence together. So, he already forms the word no in his mouth, but instead, he asks:

„Do you want it to be?"

„Well..."

She never finishes it, just lets it hang there in the air between them. She looks at his eyes, the eyes that literally make her drop everything down and just get lost in them.

„It's not a date." he finally states and she would never admit how his words disappoint her. „Just two friends, hanging out, having fun..."

„Okay."

She says with a smile.

They stand up and start to leave the room when he suddenly turns around, surprising her, making her bump into him and he takes the opportunity to hold her close to himself, his hands on her shoulders, his body an inch away from hers, his face in a seductive smirk as always. He can feel the electricity in her skin, the silent hum of her rushed up blood running through her veins like hot lava and he loves how hot she grows when he touches her.

He tilts his head to the side, with his eyes settled on her lips, as he slowly whispers to her.

„Of course, if, at any time, you happen to get the urge to grope me, feel me up or savagely take advantage of me...I'm all for it. You just say the word."

He gives her some breathing space, stepping back and letting go of her shoulders. She takes a deep breath, trying to compose herself and when she finally does, she looks back up to him. He simply winks at her and turns around to leave the room.

* * *

The bar is situated at the side of the road, about 10 miles away from Mystic Falls. First thing Bonnie notices, entering, is the vibrant atmosphere inside and a finely crafted wooden bar with stools around it, occupied with guests. There are wall tiles behind it, with big flat screens hanging over the selection of alcohol bottles and beers. There are booths and sitting groups all over, with TV screens everywhere. On every wall, there are decorations dedicated to each one sport. The football helmets, balls, trophies, and posters with the names and faces some of the biggest stars of American football. There's a wall with basketballs, jerseys, posters, as well as a baseball wall, tennis wall, volleyball, athletic and more. The music playing in the background is classic rock. There's a smell of grilled meat, onions, cheese and beer in the air.

She kicks his ass in a game of pool, he wins her on darts, and by the time they get to the soccer table, they earn themselves some audience. Bonnie's feeling a little tipsy, his mistake on letting her have beer, so her moves and screams are a bit funny and distracting. She scores a winning goal on him, while he curses under his breath. She throws her tiny fists in the air, earning a supporter group of 'yeses', 'you go girl', 'and that's how it's done' from guys settled around them in stools holding their drinks.

She turns around and high fives to Tom and Lou, having a little victory dance and mocking Damon in the process who's scowling at her.

„Who's the man? Aha! I said who's the man? I am the man!" she sings in happiness and claps her hands, throwing in a couple of cheering moves.

„You sure are!" Lou yells in laughter and watches her cute moves of conquest.

„Oh, man. A girl just kicked your ass and wiped the floor with you." A hand thrown over Damon's shoulders and an alcohol filled breath from Walden surprise him. „It must suck to be you, man!" he yells and stumbles away from him, everybody's laughter filling his ears.

So, he does the only natural thing in the world. He turns around and heads back to the bar, ordering himself another round of bourbon. He likes how it burns his throat, as he notices one of the waitresses smile mischievously at him. He smirks back at her, finishing his drink and turning back around.

His eyes catch on Bonnie who's now dancing with one of the guys. Lou's spinning her around while _Aerosmith's Crazy_ plays on the jukebox and the others are clapping their hands in rhythm, and swinging themselves. There's another couple dancing next to them, but he pays no attention to them.

Bonnie's face is covered with pure happiness and enjoyment. Laugh and surprising yelps are escaping her mouth. He watches her with a curious look on his face feeling a mix of emotions.

He thinks how funny she is tipsy and relaxed like this. He feels satisfied because of the smile that is not wearing off of her face. He feels a sting of jealousy for the guy who's dancing with her. And finally, he thinks how lucky he is, that she's agreed to spend her time with him.

He slowly steps closer, leaning on one of the stools, watching her. When the song ends everybody clap their hands on the dancing couple, and Bonnie grabs the face of the man and lays a big kiss on his cheek. He smiles, and she blushes when someone whistles on her move.

Damon slowly stands up and makes his way over to Bonnie, stepping between her and Lou, looking at a smiling Bonnie.

„Having fun?" he asks her casually.

„Oh, so much!" she exclaims happily. She looks around her and grabs her beer bottle, desperate for some fluids. Before she takes a sip, Damon wraps his hand around her wrist and takes the bottle from her.

„Wow, hey! Why don't you we switch you to something non-alcoholic?" he tells her.

„Damon!" she whines drunkenly. „Why are you repeatedly killing my buzz?"

He furrows brows, hearing mocking sounds from a guy that heard Bonnie's words, and takes her by her shoulders dragging her away from prying ears. He straightens her up and leans closer so she can hear him talk.

„Okay. I think you had enough of _the buzz_ for tonight, you buzzing little bee."

„But I'm having fun!" she tells him.

„Yeah, but you should sober up before we hit the road and go home." He removes his hands from her shoulders.

He guides her to a bar stool and she sits on it, while he holds her jacket to her so that she can put it on.

„It's bad enough that I abducted you out of the house tonight. What do you think Stefan and Elena would do if they see me bringing you back drunk? Do you want my brother to hang me upside down by my balls?"

„I thought you didn't care what Stefan thinks?" she reminds him.

One corner of his mouth goes up and he moves her hair behind her ear. „I don't." She looks up at him, and he removes his hand down. „Doesn't mean I'll let you get hammered."

„I'm not hammered." She says stubbornly „I'm a little buzzed."

He rolls his eyes and shakes his head at her. He pulls her by the hand and starts dragging her out of the bar, while the half of the guests wave their goodbye's to her. She got herself quite the audience tonight and even more suitors, so it makes great pleasure to him, to take her away under his arm.

Once they are outside, he leads her to his car while she's singing and humming happily. He laughs slightly at her and once they reach his car before he can open the door for her, she leans her back on them and raises her to look at him. She traps herself between his body and his car so easily and it makes him smile in surprise. He can't deny how much he likes tipsy Bonnie. He sets his hands on top of the car beside her head and something about this, makes him remember that night in Maryland. Only this time, he has a feeling, she's the one here calling the shots.

He notices her eyes are fixated on him as if she's trying to solve something. He frowns at her face expression.

„What?" he asks her carefully.

„You got pretty eyes." She tells him dreamily, with a playful smile on her face.

He observes her curiously and bites off the smile coming on his face.

„You're drunk." He dismisses her.

„And you're blushing!" she says teasingly.

„What? I'm not- Vampires don't blush!"

„Well, I'm not so sure about that! Because your cheeks are blushing!" she chuckles a pinches him on the cheeks.

He looks at her with a tight smile on his face, that spreads even more, when she puts her arms around his neck and leans closer to him. He tries to look unbothered, but he can feel her affection and desire, and the thrill shows on his face, so he can't hide it from her.

He doesn't want to think about it, but he can't help it. It shouldn't be on his mind, the invasions of this girl, that keeps surprising him every day with something simple that she does, like a smile that spreads over her lips or one word that she says. She amazes him, every time he sees some new side of her, and it's exhilarating.

She's pretty and sweet like a doll, with her skin so soft and delectable, her eyes shining like two diamonds in the darkest of the night.

It's more than her looks, he knows that it goes beyond that. She traps him with the sound of her voice that makes him smile when he hears it. It's her kindness and warmness she shines from the inside, the sweet generosity she has for everybody. The bravado she lacks off at the moment, but he can feel it in her, hiding, not wanting to shine out yet.

The humanity of her simple acts or words, that make him remember what it was like before he was a vampire. It's funny, that with Elena, she used to make him feel like he was never enough like he always had to be better. He wanted his humanity back and he missed it so strongly, just so he could be enough for her.

Bonnie makes him feel he's enough, like he doesn't have to change anything and he doesn't wish to be human, he doesn't wish to be anything more or less than he already is. He can be just himself and that's enough. To her, it would be enough...

„You want to kiss me, right now, don't you?" she asks him teasingly, still holding him tightly in her embrace.

He looks at the side, the smile not descending from his face. She's an adorable drunk, that's for sure.

„If I say yes, would you let me?" he asks her back.

„If I let you, would you do it?"

They both laugh sincerely. He enjoys this flirty banter they have, where both of them are too stubborn to let the other win.

And usually, he would play this indefinitely, never getting tired of it, but the look in her eyes compels him to throw in a towel and say yes. He stands up straight, leans closer, their lips barely touching, but he still stops himself for a moment.

„You sure this is not just your drunkenness speaking?" he asks her huskily, his eyes glued to her lips when his arms snake around her waist and pull her flush against his frame.

„Probably is, but I think we'we established already I want to kiss you completely sober, too."

That's good enough for him.

Their eyes close and without any hesitation, their lips meet. It's gentle and slow, yet so passionate and intimate. The world around them completely disappears, no worries, no people, no problems. She tastes like pure magic, fiery, sharp and zesty. He hears her heart beating like a drum as he runs his fingers up and down her spine, while her hands play with the hairs on the back of his neck.

And it's different from any of their kisses ever. Before, it was like they were always trying to rush to get somewhere, to kiss more, to feel more. Now, sharing this kiss is something new. It's like a proclamation of this new thing between them. He can put his finger on what it is, how he should call it or anything, but he just knows what he feels...

He feels it creeping inside of him, making its way to the surface, that tingling emotion he doesn't want to stop. The feeling she provides him, to experience something new and pure, and different from anything else he ever felt. He knows it's rising, and even though his insides are screaming at him to stop it, to forget it... he doesn't want to. He lets it. He lets his heart warm for the witch, he lets his blood boil with want for her, he lets his emotions unravel in the simplest feeling of all.

He lets her in.

* * *

 _ **Sorry for the late update, as usual. I can't believe it's been 3 months since the last time. Sorry, people! I'll try to update more often, but I can't make any promises. Work's been crazy lately, so I have no idea when the next update will be. But, rest assured, there will be.**_

 _ **Also, I do hope you managed to enjoy despite the errors. Believe it or not, this chapter was already finished in about 2 weeks after I posted the one before this one. I just had to edit it and I guess I read it too many times, it got too long and it was really exhausting for me.**_

 _ **Things are starting to warm up with Damon and Bonnie, but at the same time, all the craziness is getting back in their lives. So, yeah, it's gonna complicate things a bit ( not yet, but maybe in 2 or 3 more chapters), especially for Damon. But, there will be some fluff, too (loooots of it) and maybe some smut, but I never wrote that before, so it's a bit weird for me. I'm still looking for my style.**_

 ** _Reviews are absolutely loooved! Thanks, Y'all!_**


	18. Chapter 18

**FIC NEWS!**

 **Hey, guys!**

 **Sorry, this is not a new update on the story. It's actually some news regarding the continuation of it.**

 **I had many plans for it and just about the time I really got a kick for writing, and I thought finally I was going to be able to update it a little more often. But, unfortunately, life intervened and it totally threw me off the wagon. I won't bore you with the details of my personal life, but the last few months have been the worst time of my life. So, currently, I am trying to get back to my routine, you know, my job and school, because right now, that's pretty much all I have left of, but it's harder than I thought.**

 **So, what does that mean for my writing? Honestly, I don't plan to stop, I think that is actually one of the things that can help with these sort of "phase" of my life. I do hope I will get the inspiration to write again, but I can't tell you the time that will happen.**

 **.**

 **So, that means, for now... _Thank you for the memories_ and _My Best Freind's Daughter_ are on hiatus.**

 **.**

 **Believe me, the last thing I wanted to do is stop writing, but I just have a feeling I hit the wall and it's really hard to get it down. Especially, when I can see how the Bamon fanfic world is severely lacking lately...ever since the finale. I thought it was just a reaction on every awful thing that happens in that last season, and especially last episode (to the writers, in the words of Caroline Forbes: YOU SUCK!), but I noticed it's not really getting any better.**

 **I mean, don't get me wrong, there are still those who are very loyal and that keep writing and reading, and I love those people, but I feel we are past that peak, that the Bamon fans were at before. So, it might be a little hypocritical from me, to say that, seeing as I am putting my stories on a hiatus, but I am actually writing a new Bamon story, to which I just got an inspiration. It's a bit darker and very very angsty, but it's the stuff I enjoy writing right now. If you guys are interested I could publish it now because I have a big chunk of it written, but fair warning, it's depressing a bit and dark.**

 **Anyway, sorry for the long babbling...I hope I will have better news next time.**

 **However, I do have a treat for you, sort of a sneak peek into the next chapter of this story, so you can see guys, I'm not giving up completely, just yet.**

 **Thank you for all the love you showed me and thank you for reading, too. I hope you enjoy this little tidbit!**

* * *

„What is he, your bodyguard, now?" Damon asks bitterly after he hears the front door close.

She turns to look at him with an amused smile on her face. „He just worries."

Damon smirks, putting his cup away, taking a step closer to the witch and bending a little to see her better. He rests one hand on the counter, his body directed at her, and she copies his moves, with her head held high.

He observes her appearance, thinking how utterly gorgeous she looks in her denim high waisted shorts and a floral kimono jacket. Her long tan legs out on display, with her hair tousled and wild around her heart-shaped face, and he can feel the rush of his blood and excitement that crosses through him.

And he knows she can feel it too. The nice smile is soon replaced by her biting the side of her cheeks, to keep herself from smiling too much and raising her chin up proudly like she's the taller one in the room.

„So..." he starts as he slowly takes a step closer to her. „You're going to school?"

„Aha." She follows his moves by taking a step closer towards him.

He doesn't lose any more time as he walks in her direction and she doesn't fail to follow his moves.

„It's Saturday, today." He speaks, stopping one step away from her, looking down at her, his eyes practically eating her up.

„I know." She stops in her tracks, too, planting her hands on her hips, that proud face intact.

„What would you be doing in school then?" he rolls his eyes.

She smiles in amusement „Well, if you must know, we're preparing the set for the school play."

„School play?" he raises his eyebrows in question. „Don't tell me you're in it, please."

„Actually, I am." She answers. „Caroline was supposed to be the lead, but she's got her head all wrapped up in the production, so somebody had to take up the task."

„ _You're_ playing the lead? What play?" he tilts his head in amusement with a hint of mocking. „Oh, let me guess... _Charlotte's web_?" his drags his fingers teasingly from her shoulder down to her elbow and up again, watching fascinatingly the contrast of his skin against hers, his lips leaning down to her, whispering teasing little words while kissing the shell of her ear. „You're the itsy bitsy spider?"

She pushes him back, but not too harshly. She can't admit how good his touch feels on her.

„No." She tells him seriously. „We're doing a sort of modern version of Beuty and the Beast. I'm playing Belle."

„Ha. That sounds fun." He says skeptically.

„It is." She widens her eyes.

„When will you be back?"

„I don't know." She clears her throat. „Why do you ask?"

„No reason." He shrugs, like he has no worry in the world, watching her nod like it doesn't really bother her, either.

His smirk is in place, so she has the need to respond proudly too. She puffs up her chest a bit and tilts her head to the side, noticing his eyes following the line of her body. She looks up at his eyes and they fall down on his lips, whose one corner pulls up as he notices. He takes one step closer, their clothes practically brushing against each other.

„You want to kiss me right now, don't you?" he whispers teasingly, as he leans closer to her.

She rolls her eyes at him, feeling a warmth spreading around her chest. She smiles against her own will, before taking a deep breath and regaining her composure. She raises one of her hands and lets her finger teasingly brush over his chest. She hummed as she does that, enjoying Damon's slight squirming in place. She leans her face closer to his, slowly whispering her answer.

„If I say yes, would you let me?"

It's Damon's time to make her feet lose solid ground under her feet, so he uses one of his best charming smiles and asks her in a husky tone.

„If I let you, would you do it?"

They both laugh, throwing teasing smiles at each other, enjoying this amusing dynamic they're in the middle of. The air seems light as a feather, slowly tickling their skin and making them aware of the fondness and affection that's spreading between them.

Damon is the first one that goes for it, but Bonnie beats him and lays a kiss on him. In a second they wrap their arms around each other, while their lips and tounges dance together.

* * *

 **Love you all!**

 **Michaela**


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